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HK stocks set for greatest weekly efficiency in 4 months

Yen at 2 month high on increasing bets on rate hikes this year

Gold steady near record peak, oil set for third weekly drop

By Ankur Banerjee

SINGAPORE, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Global stocks meandered on Friday ahead of essential U.S. payrolls information as financiers considered potential customers that a more comprehensive trade war might be prevented, while the yen struck its greatest in nearly 2 months on rising odds of more in Japan this year.

In a week that started with U.S. President Donald Trump kicking off a trade war, investors have actually been hesitant in making major relocations as threatened duties on China were executed.

Beijing's determined tit-for-tat reaction has actually left room for settlements, analysts say, setiathome.berkeley.edu and that has actually allowed traders to concentrate on the AI style in China in the wake of home-grown start-up DeepSeek's advancement.

European futures pointed to a suppressed open after the pan-European STOXX 600 index closed at a record high on Thursday on the back of robust company earnings.

European stocks have actually staged their finest efficiency in a years against Wall Street in the very first six weeks of 2025, however focus is now on whether those gains can be sustained.

Eurostoxx 50 futures were down 0.41%, while FTSE futures fell 0.39%. DAX futures alleviated 0.21%.

Futures for Nasdaq and S&P 500 were down about 0.2% as shares of Amazon slipped in extended trading overnight on weakness in the retailer's cloud computing system and soft forecast.

In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index struck a three-month high, poised for a 4% rise in the week, its greatest weekly efficiency sustained by DeepSeek-led AI bets.

China's blue-chip stock index was 0.4% greater after touching a one-month high leaving MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan at its highest considering that mid-December.

"Whilst there is considerable noise and uncertainty, we wear ´ t see escalating trade stress as a game changer in the potential customers for the Chinese market," said James Cook, financial investment director for emerging markets at Federated Hermes.

"China's larger problem is not Trump but the domestic economy."

On the economic front, out of work claims, layoffs and labour costs/productivity offered a prologue to Friday's keenly awaited January employment report, with the data likely to reveal the impact of wild fires in California and winter throughout much of the nation.

Nonfarm payrolls are expected to have actually increased by 170,000 tasks last month after surging 256,000 in December, a Reuters survey of economic experts revealed.

"Markets might face some volatility around the data if it beats expectations, but it won't change the course of the FOMC policy as more information will be needed," said Anderson Alves, a trader with ActivTrades.

Markets are pricing in 43 basis points of relieving this year from the Fed with a rate cut in July totally priced in as policymakers remain in no rush to begin the rate-cutting cycle again.

While political uncertainties kept financiers wary, fears have actually eased that Trump's technique to tariffs might escalate into a global trade war.

RISING YEN

The Japanese yen has been on a tear today buoyed by safe-haven flows in addition to rising expectations of the Bank of Japan increasing rate of interest this year, with market value in 34 basis points of hikes for the year.

The yen touched 150.96 per dollar in early trading, its greatest level because December 10 however was last a little weaker at 151.71. The currency is headed for an over 2% increase against the dollar this week, its greatest weekly performance since late November.

Sterling was 0.1% lower at $1.24255 after dropping 0.5% on Thursday as the BoE cut interest rates by 25 basis points but warned it would beware going forward, in the face of a prospective inflation uptick and geopolitical worries.

Oil prices rose partially on Friday however were on track for a third straight week of decline.

Gold prices steadied on Friday near record-high levels and tandme.co.uk were headed for their 6th succeeding weekly gain driven by safe-haven flows.

(Reporting by Ankur Banerjee; extra reporting by Stephen Culp, Marc Jones and Alun John; editing by Shri Navaratnam and wavedream.wiki Sam Holmes)