Markets Steady Amid U.S.-China Trade Talks

Global stocks and the dollar remained stable as U.S.-China trade discussions entered their second day, providing optimism for easing tensions. The talks' progress could relieve markets affected by fluctuating tariffs. Meanwhile, slight movements in key indices and mixed performances among top Wall Street companies were observed.

Global stocks and the dollar held their ground on Tuesday as trade negotiations between the United States and China continued into a second day. Investors remain hopeful that tensions between the two largest economies could be diminishing.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed optimism about the discussions in London. Any progress is anticipated to reassure markets, previously rattled by erratic tariff announcements and strained Sino-U.S. relations, disrupting supply chains and hindering global growth. Concurrently, the World Bank reduced its global growth forecast for 2025 by 0.4 percentage points to 2.3%, citing high tariffs and uncertainty as significant challenges to most economies.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average showed little change, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite saw slight increases of about 0.3%. Influential companies displayed mixed results, with Tesla gaining 4%, Microsoft declining 0.9%, and Alphabet climbing 1.4% following a report about its collaboration with OpenAI. The MSCI All-Country World Index approached record heights, rising 0.2%, while the dollar maintained stability against several currencies.

(With inputs from agencies.)