FOREX-Yen, Swiss franc hold gains as trade war worries deepen; yuan falters

* Graphic: World FX rates in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
* Trump's comments on trade roil markets
* Prolonged trade war hurts global growth
* Safe-havens gain, dollar weakens broadly

By Stanley White
TOKYO, Dec 4 (Reuters) - The yen and Swiss franc held gains
against the dollar on Wednesday as appetite for safe-havens
spiked after U.S. President Donald Trump warned a trade deal
with China might not be in place until after the 2020 U.S.
presidential election.
That sent the Chinese yuan CNY=CFXS to a 5-1/2-week low
against dollar as investors feared the United States could carry
out its plan to raise tariffs even further on Chinese goods on
Dec. 15.
The U.S. currency, however, was broadly sold against its
major rivals, which helped sterling climb to its highest level
in more that six months on the greenback.
Trump's statement that he had "no deadline" for an agreement
with China hurt sentiment and roiled financial markets. Global
trade frictions have already weakened world growth with many
economies struggling to find their footing in the face of
softening exports, investments and corporate profits.
The offshore yuan CNH=D3 , fell to 7.0738 per dollar,
close to its weakest level since Oct. 18. The onshore yuan
CNY=CFXS opened on Wednesday at its softest since Oct. 25, and
was last quoted down 0.1% at 7.0692.
"Expectations for a U.S.-China trade deal are fading, and
dollar/yen has broken its support levels, so the bias is tilted
to the downside," said Takuya Kanda, general manager of research
at Gaitame.com Research Institute in Tokyo.
"More tariffs would push dollar/yen lower still."
The yen JPY=EBS stood at 108.60 versus the dollar on
Wednesday, close to its strongest since Nov. 22.
The Swiss franc CHF=EBS was quoted at 0.9875 versus the
dollar, near its highest level since Nov. 4.
Both the Japanese and Swiss currencies tend to be bought as
safe-havens during times of uncertainty.
Trump was already at the centre of a major stir on trade
this week.
On Monday, he said he would hit Brazil and Argentina with
import tariffs for "massive devaluation of their currencies".
The United States then threatened duties of up to 100% on
French goods, from champagne to handbags, because of a digital
services tax that Washington says harms U.S. tech companies.
The latest Trump comments on the prospects for a Sino-U.S.
trade deal underline the gulf on trade and other issues between
the world's two biggest economies.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Tuesday said that
while staff-level talks are continuing with Chinese officials,
no high-level meetings are scheduled. If there is no deal or substantial progress in talks before
Dec. 15, tariffs on remaining Chinese imports, including cell
phones, laptop computers and toys, will take effect, Ross told
CNBC on Tuesday.
The dollar index .DXY against a basket of six major
currencies was quoted at 97.768, having skidded to a one-month
low.
Sterling GBP=D3 benefited from the dollar's woes and
traded at $1.2993, close to the highest since mid-May.