Stocks advance after Bessent says talks with China were successful before Trump-Xi meeting

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HONG KONG (AP) — Asian shares mostly advanced Monday as investors monitor updates ahead of the expected meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week in Washington which could cover trade, artificial intelligence and geopolitics.

U.S. futures were higher, after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters following talks Sunday with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York ahead of the two leaders’ meeting that the U.S. had “a very successful engagement” with the Chinese side.

Technology stocks in Asia also moved higher on the AI boom even as American tech leaders called for a slowdown in AI development on safety concerns. South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.8% to 7,018.98. Samsung Electronics jumped 5%, while memory chipmaker SK Hynix climbed 1%.

Taiwan’s Taiex was up 1.1%, with its leading AI chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., or TSMC, adding 0.6%.

Hong Kong’s Heng Seng advanced 0.6% to 24,891.58. The Shanghai Composite index also gained 0.6% to 3,933.37.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 will be closed through Wednesday for a holiday.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was almost unchanged at 8,730.40.

India’s Sensex rose 0.6%.

On Sunday, Bessent said talks with China touched on trade and AI. China and the United States have been discussing reciprocal tariff reductions on $30 billion worth of goods from each side.

Trade, tariffs, AI safety among other items are likely to be on the agenda when Trump and Xi meet later this week. The war in Iran and developments in the Middle East and ties between China and Iran could also likely be discussed.

Oil prices fell early Monday as vessel traffic and energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz picked up, although the Strait has remained largely closed and there are still uncertainties in U.S.-Iran tensions, while tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi Arabia's closure of a key oil pipeline also added pressure to global oil supplies.

Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2.1% to $101.67 per barrel. It was at roughly $72 a barrel in late February, before the start of the war in Iran.

Benchmark U.S. crude lost 2.2% to $93.99 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar rose to 157.02 Japanese yen from 156.81 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1476, down from $1.1483.

Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 added 0.2% on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 0.2%, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 0.4%.

Investors are also watching the bond market as the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury hit 5% and the Federal Reserve last week decided to raise rates for the first time in three years. The Bank of Japan last week also raised rates to a 31-year high.

Government bond yields have been elevated since the war also because of growing inflationary pressure from the war-driven energy shock as well as rising U.S. national debt.

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AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed to this report.