US equity markets recovered from earlier session decline to end a tough week on a positive note despite the US introducing a second round of punitive tariffs in US$200B worth of Chinese products from 10% to 25% - Dow up +114-points or +0.44% after recovering from an earlier -358-point decline. The broader S&P500 +0.37% to snap a four session losing streak, NASDAQ +0.08%. Uber Technologies Inc made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), opening at US$42 per share before closing -7.62$ below its US$45 per share initial public offering (IPO) price at US$41.57. President Trump said that he was in "no rush" to finalise a deal and also said that he was “starting the paperwork” on Thursday (16 May) to impose 25% levies on Chinese goods worth an additional US$325B. However, a series of tweets from President Trump later in the session cheered the markets, with the President describing the talks with China as "candid and constructive" and noting that his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping "remains a very strong one, and conversations into the future will continues". Separately, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the China trade talks were "constructive." Chinese Vice Premier Liu He also said the talks went "fairly well," according to reports. White House Economic Advisor Larry Kudlow said in a Fox News interview on Sunday (12 May) that President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are likely to meet at the June G-20 summit in Japan. President Trump took to social media overnight and noted that the tariff deal "will become far worse for [China] if it has to be negotiated in my second term". Looking ahead, Saturday (18 May) marks the deadline for President Trump to decide on potential auto tariffs for the European Union (EU), though economists expect he could extend that cut-off time. For the week, the Dow lost -2.12% (its biggest weekly fall since March). The S&P500 dropped -2.18% and the Nasdaq -3.03%, with both indices recording their largest weekly falls since the week ended 21 December, 2018.
