Good morning traders, happy Friday? Maybe not so much with the tariff deadline now fast approaching. Thanks @ttward, @Ravgnome & the aftermarket loungers. Another messy night overseas in the markets, looked a lot worse at once point. Actually, of the major markets I track only the Aussie markets closed in the green. It’s nice to be an outperformer for once at least!

ASX Market Report

Australian shares have finished higher despite weakness in the mining sector, as investors watch the US-China trade talks for a chance of a deal.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed up 26.2 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 6,295.3 points at 1615 AEST on Thursday, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 25.5 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 6,377.3. "Basically the market is holding onto some gains," said CommSec market analyst Steven Daghlian. "It has been quite a volatile week so far." The 26-point gain reversed Wednesday's 26-point loss.

With the US scheduled to more than double tariffs on China on Friday unless a trade deal is reached, investors are looking at possible outcomes carefully, Mr Daghlian said.

More than seven out of 10 shares traded higher on Thursday, but the mining sector sunk lower, down 0.28 per cent collectively. BHP was down 0.54 per cent to $36.98 and Rio Tinto fell 0.63 per cent to $95.35.

Telstra gained 2.74 per cent to $3.38 after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said a day earlier that two of its rivals, Vodafone and TPG, should not be allowed to merge. TPG fell 0.33 per cent to $6.05 while Vodafone Australia co-owner Hutchison Telecommunications regained some of Wednesday's losses, closing up 13.04 per cent to 13 cents.

Three of the four big banks were in the green, with Commonwealth up 0.58 per cent to $75.17, NAB up 0.35 per cent to $25.91 and ANZ up 0.22 per cent to $27.65. Westpac fell 0.29 per cent to $27.06.

The building products sector fell after Adelaide Brighton announced it expected net profit this year to be 10 to 15 per cent lower than last year's figure of $190.1 million, due in part to weakened demand for construction material in the residential market. Adelaide Brighton shares fell 10.26 per cent to $3.76 while Fletcher Building dropped 3.23 per cent to $4.80 and Boral Limited fell 1.64 per cent to $4.81.

Qantas shares climbed 2.21 per cent to $5.56 after the airline said its revenue for the three months to March 31 was up 2.3 per cent to $4.4 billion, even though the late timing of Easter meant a significant amount of revenue from holiday travel moved into the fourth quarter.

Graincorp shares dropped 4.27 per cent to $7.63 after the bulk grains handler said severe dry weather resulted in a $59 million half-year loss.

The Aussie dollar is buying 69.78 US cents, from 69.88 US cents on Wednesday. Mr Daghlian said the Aussie dollar could experience volatility on Friday, with US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell giving a speech and the Reserve Bank of Australia's statement on monetary policy set for release at 1130 AEST.

ON THE ASX:

* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 26.2 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 6,295.3 points at 1630 AEST on Thursday.

* The All Ordinaries was up 25.5 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 6,377.3.

* At 1630 AEST, the SPI200 futures index was up 33 points, or 0.53 at 6,272

CURRENCY SNAPSHOT AT 1630 AEST:

One Australian dollar buys:

* 69.78 US cents, from 69.88 US cents on Wednesday

* 76.64 Japanese yen, from 76.94 yen

* 62.30 euro cents, from 62.44 euro cents

* 53.60 British pence, from 53.73 pence

* 106.07 NZ cents, from 106.28 cents

Global Markets Report

Stock indexes around the world fell for a fourth day in a row on Thursday, though Wall Street closed above session lows after comments from President Donald Trump about U.S.-China trade talks a day before the United States was due to raise tariffs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 138.97 points, or 0.54%, to 25,828.36, the S&P 500 lost 8.7 points, or 0.30%, to 2,870.72 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 32.73 points, or 0.41%, to 7,910.59. The pan-European STOXX 600 index lost 1.65% and MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe shed 0.78%.

Trump said Thursday afternoon he received a “beautiful letter” from Chinese President Xi Jinping asking to work together to “get something done.” Negotiators were to meet at 5 p.m. Eastern (2100 GMT) and continue talks through Friday. Wall Street participants were still anxious but oil prices also pared losses after Trump’s comments. U.S. Treasury yields fell as investors sought safe havens and the dollar was down against Japan’s yen, though it regained some ground.

Earlier in the day China had asked the United States to meet it halfway in the hope of staving off threat of a U.S. tariff hike on $200 billion of Chinese goods to 25% from 10% at 12:01 a.m EDT (0400 GMT) on Friday. “What the market fears deep down is an all-out trade war with no hope for resolution,” said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York. “Trading today is telling me that the expectation for a trade deal is now that it’s likely to happen a bit sooner than months away or never,” he said.

Previously Beijing said it would retaliate if the tariff hike is implemented, while Trump had insisted China “broke the deal.” “Investors are worried about the clash of the titans,” said Joseph Quinlan head of market strategy for Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank in New York. “It’s the knock-on effect on the rest of the world in terms of potential disruptions to global supply chains, the decline in investor confidence, business confidence and consumer confidence. And we’re getting closer to striking midnight.”

U.S. Treasury yields fell as investors looked for safety but regained some ground after hitting a five-week low partly due to Trump’s latest comments. Yet strategists were cautious. “I don’t think we are going to get an all-clear sign on Friday,” said Blake Gwinn, head of front-end rates strategy at NatWest Markets in Stamford, Connecticut. “This could keep rolling along for weeks or months.” Benchmark 10-year notes last rose 9/32 in price to yield 2.4512%, from 2.483% late on Wednesday after hitting a session low of 2.422%, which was also a five-week low.

In currencies, the yen had surged to a three-month high against the dollar and the Swiss franc was at a three-week high as investors worried about an escalating trade conflict. The greenback eased some declines and was last down 0.4% against the yen. The dollar index fell 0.21%, with the euro up 0.25% to $1.1219.

In commodities, spot gold added 0.3% to $1,283.81 an ounce.

Brent oil futures settled slightly higher and U.S. crude pared losses after a revival of investor hopes the United States could reach a trade deal and avert a hit to global economic growth, which would crimp oil demand. U.S. crude futures fell 0.85% to $61.70 per barrel, down 42 cents, 0.68% while Brent futures settled at $70.39 per barrel, up 2 cents, 0.03%. lost 2.08

Please include the STOCK CODE in your post out of respect for your fellow traders, or use the OT (off topic) tag for non-stock related content.