President Trump agreed Saturday in a meeting with Chinese Leader Xi Jinping to hold off for 90 days before levying $200 billion in tariffs on China.
WASHINGTON — The truce in the trade dispute between the U. S. and China should boost rattled financial markets, at least likely through year’s end, experts say. But the stock market’s wild gyrations of recent months likely will persist as the two countries strain to reach a permanent accord.
“The all-clear sign hasn’t flashed yet but it’s certainly positive news,” says Mike Loewengart, vice president of investment strategy at E-Trade.
The U. S. was set to raise tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods Jan. 1. President Trump agreed Saturday in a meeting with Chinese Leader Xi Jinping at the G-20 summit to hold off for 90 days while the two sides try to settle their differences.
That looming deadline, as well as Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on an additional $267 billion of goods from China, possibly including iPhones and laptops, had contributed to sharp declines in stocks since early October.
The agreement buys time for the two countries to work out their differences in a fight over China’s aggressive drive to supplant U. S. technological dominance.
In the short term, at least, strong market gains could be in the offing.
“I think the market will probably respond quite favorably,” Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist for CFRA, said in reference to the temporary trade accord.
