According to the Securities Times, China's Ministry of Commerce stated on Friday that the US has recently actively conveyed messages through relevant parties, hoping to engage in talks with China. In response, China is currently conducting an assessment.
This news instantly ignited market optimism, with global stock markets generally strengthening on Friday. Meanwhile, US tech giants reported mixed results as investors focus on the upcoming US non-farm payroll report on Friday.
Market sentiment in the Asia-Pacific region is high, with the FTSE China A50 index futures rising 1.3% during the day, the Hang Seng Index closing up 1.7%, the Hang Seng Tech Index soaring 3%, and the Nikkei Index closing up over 1%.
In pre-market trading of US stocks, popular Chinese concept stocks collectively rose, with Xpeng Motors up over 6%, Alibaba rising over 4%, and Apple at one point down 3%.
Major US and European stock index futures are up, with the Euro Stoxx 50 index futures rising over 1%.
Spot gold rebounded, standing above $3,260 per ounce.
The RMB exchange rate surged, with the offshore RMB against the US dollar rising 300 points during the day, and also strengthening against the dollar.
[The following market data was updated at 16:10]
The three major US stock index futures saw slight narrowing in gains, with the S&P 500 index futures up 0.5%.
In pre-market trading of US stocks, Apple was down over 3% at one point; Apple's earnings barely beat expectations, announcing a $100 billion buyback, but tariffs will lead to a $900 million increase in costs.
Amazon fell over 2% in pre-market trading, with disappointing profit guidance and warnings about tariff impacts.
Most popular Chinese concept stocks rose in pre-market trading, with Xpeng Motors up over 6%, Alibaba rising over 4%, NIO, Li Auto, and JD.com up over 3%, and Pinduoduo up over 2%.
As Hong Kong stocks closed, the Hang Seng Index rose 1.74%, and the Hang Seng Tech Index rose 3.08%. Tech stocks surged across the board, with Xiaomi Group rising over 6%, Alibaba up 3.8%, Tencent up 2.56%, and Kingsoft Cloud up over 4%.
[The following market data was updated at 14:30]
The offshore RMB against the US dollar broke above the 7.25 mark, rising 300 points during the day.
Spot gold rose sharply, once again standing above $3,260 per ounce, up 0.6% during the day.
The FTSE China A50 index futures rose 1.3% during the day, and the Nikkei 225 index closed up 1.04%.
US Treasuries remained stable, and the US dollar index slightly fell.
[The following market data was updated at 11:30]
The Asia-Pacific stock market rose significantly on Friday, with the MSCI Asia-Pacific index up 0.6%, and the Nikkei 225 index at one point rising over 1%.
The FTSE China A50 index rose nearly 1%. Hong Kong stocks surged, with the Hang Seng Index up over 1%, the Hang Seng Tech Index once up over 3%, led by Xpeng Motors, and Xiaomi Group rising over 4%. A-shares were closed for the May Day holiday.
In the US and European markets, the S&P 500 index futures reversed earlier losses, jumping 0.7%, Dow futures rose 0.8%, and Nasdaq 100 index futures rose 0.4%.
German and British index futures both rose over 1%.
In the foreign exchange market, the offshore RMB against the US dollar rose to 7.2519, the highest level since late March.
As the Bank of Japan indicated that achieving its inflation target will take longer than previously expected, traders cut bets on further interest rate hikes, causing the yen to weaken against the dollar.
Japan's chief negotiator stated after the latest round of talks in Washington that Japan plans to reach a trade agreement with the US in June, with bilateral high-risk discussions expected to accelerate in mid-May.
The market is focused on Friday's non-farm payroll report.
"No matter which side takes the initiative, this is a significant development," said Steven Leung, Executive Director of Dahua Jixian Hong Kong Limited. "The financial market is likely to see a wave of short covering, as the market now has higher expectations for a solution to break the current deadlock."
The S&P 500 index has risen for eight consecutive trading days—its longest streak since last August—due to rising optimism about easing trade tensions.
However, this optimism is facing a test as investors turn their attention to the upcoming US non-farm payroll report on Friday—the last important data of the week.