As if the financial markets needed any more stress, the relationship between the United States and China seems to be turning sour once again. Just days ago, the US accused several Chinese military officers of hacking sensitive data. Now there have been new charges against Huawei, a Chinese tech giant that has found itself the target of US sanctions multiple times since the trade war started.
It is unclear if these measures on behalf of the United States will jeopardize the future trade negotiations with China. The phase-one agreement signed in January is by no means comprehensive and does not even begin to resolve all of the issues these two countries have with one another.
Despite the possible renewal of trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies, the US dollar continues to soar, reaching a two-year high against the euro. The US stock markets are also more optimistic today.
In the meantime, the Covid-19 virus continues to claim more and more victims. Over 64,000 people are now infected in China, with around 1,300 deaths, though these numbers might not be altogether trustworthy, as China has changed the way it counts cases several times and has reported numbers that don’t seem to match very well.
The epidemic has also expanded in Hong Kong and Singapore, with over 50 cases confirmed in the former. Both Hong Kong and Singapore are warning that the coronavirus outbreak will damage their economies. Hong Kong was already struggling to keep its financial markets afloat due to the pro-democracy protests which started last year.
