Jan 2 (Reuters) - Asian shares gained for the fourth
successive month in December as appetite for regional shares
improved after the U.S. and China agreed on a preliminary deal
to end their 17-month long trade war.
The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares
.MIAP00000PUS gained 4.2% in December, compared with the
month's gains of about 3.4% for the MSCI's global share index
.MIWD00000PUS .
The United States and China agreed on a deal on Dec. 13 that
reduces some U.S. tariffs in exchange for what U.S. officials
said would be a big jump in Chinese purchases of American farm
products and other goods. The deal is expected to be signed on
Jan 15.
Asia-Pacific shares however, lagged behind global shares in
the year and in the last decade.
The MSCI's Asia-Pacific Index gained about 16% in 2019
compared with 24% for the World index.
New Zealand shares .NZ50 lead both 2019 and last decade's
gains in the region. In U.S. dollar terms, local shares gained
30.8% in 2019 and 231% in the last decade.
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Asia-Pacific equities performance in Dec 2019 https://tmsnrt.rs/2MIJvaC
Asia-Pacific equities performance in 2019 https://tmsnrt.rs/39uScz6
Asia-Pacific equities performance in last decade https://tmsnrt.rs/2SFEIuw
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