CORRECTED-GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks inch higher as investors downplay escalating trade war

(Corrects company name in paragraph 11 to "Amundi" from "Amundi
Pioneer")
By David Randall
NEW YORK, Sept 30 (Reuters) - A rise in U.S. technology
stocks and better-than-expected economic data in China pushed
global equity markets higher Monday, despite reports that
Washington was considering escalating its trade war with China
by delisting Chinese companies from U.S. exchanges.
U.S. President Donald Trump is looking at the move as part
of a broader effort to limit U.S. investment in Chinese
companies, sources told Reuters on Friday, though it was not
clear how any such delisting would work. MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS
gained 0.16%. .MIWD00000PUS , following a 0.1% gain for Europe's
Euro STOXX 600 .STOXX . On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose
95.9 points, or 0.36%, to 26,916.15, the S&P 500 .SPX gained
14.89 points, or 0.50%, to 2,976.68 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 59.71 points, or 0.75%, to 7,999.34. China has warned of instability in global markets from any
"decoupling" with the United States, noting a U.S. Treasury
response that said there were no immediate plans to block
Chinese listings. There were few signs that investors were fleeing to
safe-haven assets, with benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR
yielding 1.6732%, from 1.673% late on Friday.
Market players said the threat of delisting was being seen
as just a tactic before U.S.-China trade talks resume next week.
Investors are accustomed to belligerence from Trump before he
dials down his rhetoric, said Luca Paolini, chief strategist at
Pictet Asset Management.
"It's a strategy that we have seen in the past - keeping the
pressure very high and then settling for whatever deal is
possible," he said.
Any progress in talks next month would probably fall short
of a comprehensive deal, he added. "It's more likely than not
that there will some kind of agreement that would be more
cosmetic in nature."
Also supporting the mood in Asia was economic data from
China on Monday that showed sustained weakness in exports but a
surprising improvement in domestic consumption indicators.
"This is better than what the market was expecting," said
Alessia Berardi, senior economist at Amundi, adding that markets
were downplaying the likelihood of a major escalation in the
trade war by Washington.
"The probability of implementing the (delisting) decision
for the market is still quite low," she said.
Chinese markets will trade only on Monday before a week-long
holiday that marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the
People's Republic of China.
The dollar was little changed against a basket of six major
currencies .DXY , adding 0.1% to 99.117. Earlier this month it
reached 99.37, its highest in more than two years. China's offshore yuan CNH=EBS also held steady before
China's holiday, trading at 7.139 per dollar.
Oil prices slipped as the trade war continued to weigh on
the growth outlook for China, the world's largest crude
importer. Brent crude LCOc1 futures fell 1.3% to $61.47 a
barrel, while U.S. crude CLcv1 dropped 0.9% to $55.43.
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Global assets in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl
Global currencies vs. dollar http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
Emerging markets in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2ihRugV
MSCI All Country Wolrd Index Market Cap http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j
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