News that Donald Trump had agreed to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent Asian stock markets surging and the yen tumbling on Friday, while dealers were also optimistic US trade tariffs will be less severe than thought. South Korea said the two leaders would hold an unprecedented summit by the end of May, raising hopes they can broker an agreement on Pyongyang’s nuclear programme that has fuelled tensions on the peninsula. A senior South Korean security official said Kim had “expressed his eagerness to meet President Trump as soon as possible”, while the US leader tweeted that “great progress” had been made in persuading the North to end its nuclear programme. The news provided a springboard for Asian markets, with Seoul surging 1.1 percent and Tokyo ending 0.5 percent higher. Hong Kong added 1.1 percent, Sydney and Singapore each rose 0.3 percent, and Shanghai jumped 0.6 percent. Taipei, Manila, Wellington and Mumbai were also higher. The development came just months after a period of extreme tension and bellicose rhetoric between Washington and Pyongyang that sounded like the growing drumbeat of war as the North carried out a series of missile and nuclear tests. “It’s a big deal — there’s no question this is a positive move,” Ian Bremmer, president of Eurasia Group, a political-risk research and consulting firm in New York, told Bloomberg TV. “But also there is the possibility that it could go badly, that Trump could be embarrassed that they make an agreement that Kim Jong Un could backslide on.” Hopes that the two could reach some sort of agreement also led to a plunge in the yen, which is considered a go-to safe currency in times of volatility and uncertainty. The dollar jumped to its highest level in a week. Trade war fears Also Thursday, Trump signed off on controversial tariffs for steel and aluminium imports, which have been met with anger across the world and from within his own Republican party, while raising the spectre of a global trade war. He said Mexico and Canada had been exempted from the levies while they held talks on a new trilateral free-trade agreement, and invited other countries to discuss carve-outs. However, analysts warned the issue could still blow up down the road and dealers remain on edge on concerns over a possible trade war, which sparked a global sell-off last week. Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at AxiTrader, said: “For the moment, fears have been eased in the immediate term. “But it’s clear that China and to a lesser extent the EU is about to come in for greater scrutiny. Something that has the potential to really rattle markets if, as (Chinese) foreign minister Wang Yi said yesterday, ‘China would have to make a justified and necessary response’.” The tariffs lean on a little-used national security clause in US trade law, which Beijing described as an “abuse”. The Ministry of Commerce said the measures would be “a serious attack on normal international trade order”, adding that “China is firmly opposed”. Trump has signalled he now intends to address intellectual property issues with Beijing. On currency markets, the dollar gained ground against the euro after the European Central Bank lowered its inflation outlook, which tempered expectations for tighter monetary policy. Eyes are now on the release later Friday of US jobs and wage growth data, which will provide a better idea about the Fed’s plans for lifting interest rates. In early European trade, London was flat while Paris and Frankfurt each fell 0.2 percent. Key figures Seoul – KOSPI: UP 1.1 percent at 2,459.45 (close) Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.5 percent at 21,469.20 (close) Hong Kong – Hang Seng: UP 1.1 percent at 30,996.21 (close) Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 3,307.17 (close) London – FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,202.90 Euro/dollar: UP at $1.2320 from $1.2312 at 2150 GMT Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3810 from $1.3811 Dollar/yen: UP at 106.70 yen from 106.12 yen Oil – West Texas Intermediate: UP nine cents at $60.21 per barrel Oil – Brent North Sea: UP 14 cents at $63.75 per barrel New York – Dow: UP 0.4 percent at 24,895.21 (close). Published in Daily Times, March 10th 2018.