Global stocks rise on plans for US-China trade talks

World stocks rose on Friday as news of plans for US-China trade talks soothed nerves over their tariff war, while the recovery in Turkey’s lira ran out of steam.

The MSCI All-Country World index, which tracks shares in 47 countries, was up 0.2 per cent.

Turkey’s lira, meanwhile, dropped nearly 3.0 per cent to almost 6 per dollar again, having recovered ground rapidly in recent days.

The currency plunged to a record low of 7.24 per dollar at the start of the week. The currency has lost a third of its value this year.

Global stocks suffered this week as the sell-off spilled into developed markets, adding to the angst over US-China trade relations and the fiscal prudence of Italy’s anti-establishment government.

Emerging market stocks entered a technical bear market as the sell-off intensified, registering a 20 per cent drop.

There was more gloom elsewhere, with European banks and copper also falling into bear market territory.

London copper slid 1.0 per cent, declining for a fifth session in six and set for its biggest weekly decline since early July as supply disruption concerns eased.

Pig prices dropped on concerns about an outbreak of African swine fever, which could hit demand in China, where retail sales top $840 billion a year.

Elsewhere, the dollar dipped against a basket of currencies , moving further away from its highest levels since June 2017, hit earlier in the week as investors bought the US currency in a flight to safety.

The euro rose nearly 0.4 per cent to its highest since Tuesday.

Brent crude oil futures rose 0.4 per cent to $71.72 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 0.3 per cent at $65.66.