FOREX-Dollar heads for weekly gain on trade talk hope but doubts remain

* Graphic: World FX rates in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
* Dollar buoyed by U.S.-China tariffs pledge
* Some doubt about when trade deal will be signed
* BoE division hurts pound, paves way for rate cut

By Stanley White
TOKYO, Nov 8 (Reuters) - The dollar held its gains versus
the yen and Swiss franc on Friday as investors bought riskier
assets on news that China and the United States had agreed to
roll back tariffs as part of an as yet unfinalised preliminary
pact to end their trade war.
China and the United States have agreed to roll back tariffs
on each others' goods in a "phase one" trade deal if it is
completed, officials from both sides said on Thursday.
Sentiment is likely to remain supportive for the dollar,
equities and other risky assets as a de-escalation in the
U.S.-China trade war removes a huge risk to the global economic
outlook.
"The overall tone is risk-on, which is a positive for the
dollar and a negative for the yen," said Tsutomu Soma, general
manager of fixed income business solutions at SBI Securities Co
in Tokyo.
"We can see this in other markets, which is why stocks are
so strong. We still need to figure out when the United States
and China will sign this deal, but the mood so far is supportive
for markets."
The dollar held steady at 109.26 yen JPY=EBS on Friday,
close to a five-month high, and was headed for a 1% gain for the
week.
The greenback CHF=EBS edged higher to 0.9949 Swiss franc,
on course for a 0.9% gain.
The dollar index .DXY against a basket of six major
currencies stood at 98.136, up 1% this week.
The progress in resolving the 16-month long trade war also
supported the China's yuan. In the onshore market, the yuan
CNY=CFXS traded at 6.9788 per dollar, and it was set for its
fifth straight weekly gain, which would be the longest winning
streak since February.
However, there is still some scepticism about a trade deal
as officials inside and outside the White House have bristled at
the notion of giving up punitive tariffs.
Muddying the water further, White House spokeswoman Stephanie
Grisham told Fox News Channel in an interview on Thursday that
the United States is "very, very optimistic" about reaching a
trade deal with China soon. The prospects to the United States and China ending their
trade war left the safe haven yen nursing losses against the
euro and the Australian dollar.
Sterling traded near a two-week low in the wake of the Bank
of England's decicion on Thursday to keep its Bank Rate
unchanged at 0.75%. Investors had expected that decision to be
unanimous, but two of the nine member board voted for a cut due
to uncertainties posed by Britain's fraught exit from the
European Union, and others, including Governor Mark Carney, said
they would consider a reduction in the future.
As a result, market odds on a interest rate cut next year
rose as high as 80%.
The pound GBP=D3 traded a $1.2812, close to the lowest
since Oct. 24. Cable was on course for a 1% decline this week.
Hitherto, the BoE has resisted following the U.S. Federal
Reserve and the European Central Bank in cutting its main
interest rate, but the outcome of Thursday's meeting suggests
the BoE is poised to change its stance.