Stocks Hit Record High, Bond Yields Jump, Pound Up: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) -- Global stocks hit a record high for the first time since early 2018 and bond yields climbed after news that President Donald Trump signed off on a trade deal with China averting tariffs set for Sunday.The pound surged the most in almost three years in the wake of exit polls showing a solid majority for U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, offering greater clarity for Brexit. Shares jumped in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Seoul with more modest gains seen in Sydney. China’s yuan punched through 7 per dollar in offshore trading. Ten-year Treasury yields extended Thursday’s rise, and the yen retreated. Futures on the S&P 500 Index saw smaller gains and those on the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index slipped as the rise in sterling weighed.The removal of tariff uncertainty will return investor focus to signs the global economy is improving as a strong year for risk assets heads toward a close. Thursday’s gain in American stocks pushed the MSCI All-Country global benchmark of shares to a record high.The deal presented to Trump by trade advisers Thursday included a promise by the Chinese to buy more U.S. agricultural goods, according to people familiar with the matter. Officials also discussed possible reductions of existing duties on Chinese products, they said. The terms have been agreed but the legal text has not yet been finalized, the people said. A White House spokesperson declined to comment.Meanwhile, Boris Johnson is on course to win a decisive victory in the U.K.’s general election, vindicating his gamble on an early vote and putting the country on track to leave the European Union next month. The official exit poll predicted the prime minister’s Conservatives will win 368 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons -- a large overall majority.These are the main moves in markets:StocksThe MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.3% as of 11:17 a.m. in Tokyo.Japan’s Topix index rose 1.6%.Korea’s Kospi Index climbed 1.4%.S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.6%.The Hang Seng Index rose 1.7%.The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.2%.Futures on the S&P 500 Index were up 0.4% after the gauge rose 0.9% Thursday.FTSE 100 futures fell 0.2%.CurrenciesThe euro rose 0.4% to $1.1179.The British pound rose 2.6% to $1.3498.The Japanese yen fell 0.2% to 109.54 per dollar after a 0.7% decline.The offshore yuan slipped 0.3% to 6.9677 per dollar after a 1.2% climb.BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries rose 2 basis points to 1.91%.Australia’s 10-year yield soared 11 basis points to 1.24%.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude climbed 0.6% to $59.52 a barrel.Gold fell 0.1% to $1,469 an ounce.To contact the reporter on this story: Cormac Mullen in Tokyo at cmullen9@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

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