Business live - Global stock markets rally as fears of trade war and recession ease

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Donald Trump said on Sunday that America is “doing very well with China, and talking!” (AP)

Global stock markets have begun to rally after more than two weeks of sustained falls. Stocks had been hammered by fears of a deepening trade war between the US and China but comments made by Donald Trump over the weekend delivered some reason for cautious optimism.

In London the FTSE 100 rose 0.9 per cent, while markets in Germany, France and China also rose.

Donald Trump said on Sunday that America is “doing very well with China, and talking!” and also claimed that the US was "poised for big growth" once trade disagreements are resolved.

Key Points

• FTSE 100 rises
• Brexit deadline prompts surprise jump in home sales, sasy Rightmove
• Surge in travel insurance claims

[19 August 2019 08:38 · ben.chapman]

Good morning and welcome to The Independent's coverage of business and economics events.

Stock markets across Europe and Asia have jumped on renewed optimism that the world's two largest economies could reach a deal on trade.

Donald Trump said over the weekend that America is “doing very well with China, and talking!” and also claimed that the US was "poised for big growth" once trade disagreements are resolved.

The FTSE 100 is up 0.9 per cent to 7,182.62, partly helped by a jump in oil company shares

Germany's DAX index is up 1.15 per cent to 11,695.26

France's CAC 40 is up 0.9 per cent to 5,349.59

Asian indexes also rose overnight.

[19 August 2019 08:52 · ben.chapman]

Travel insurers are now dealing with one new claim every three minutes typically from UK travellers needing emergency medical treatment while overseas.

Some 153,000 travellers needed emergency medical treatment abroad last year - equating to 420 people every day, or one person every three minutes, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said.

The total medical bill paid by insurers in 2018 was £209m - the highest figure since 2010.

This meant that medical claims accounted for more than half of the £399m in travel insurance claims paid out last year.

Press Association

[19 August 2019 08:53 · ben.chapman]

The looming Brexit deadline is spurring some home buyers into action, according to a website.

The average asking price on a home across Britain still fell by 1 per cent or £3,192 month-on-month in August, Rightmove said, adding this was a better performance than usual for the summer holidays.

The average price tag now stands at £305,500.

The number of sales being agreed is the strongest for this time of year since 2015 and are 6.1% higher than a year ago, according to the index.

The North East of England, the East of England and Yorkshire and the Humber are leading the way with sales over 10% higher than a year earlier, Rightmove said.

Press Association

[19 August 2019 09:08 · ben.chapman]

The number of restaurants in the UK declined by 3.4 per cent in the year to the end of June.

Consulting firms CGA and AlixPartners found there were 18 net closures every week.

A number of casual dining chains closed branches or folded altogether over the past year as the industry continued to suffer.

American chains were among those who bucked the trend with a 58 per cent jump in the number of outlets.

[19 August 2019 09:34 · ben.chapman]

The government's leaked Operation Yellowhammer report appears to confirm that a no-deal Brexit would lead to large-scale disruption to UK food supplies.

Justin King, the former chief executive of Sainsbury's has told the BBC that it will take time to "re-source" certain produce from different places.

Some may be produced in the UK, however, "if we're talking salad in the winter, that means polytunnels and greenhouses that don't currently exist and often quite significant planning issues," he says.

"So there is not easy short-term solution to this kind of blockade."

It could also mean higher greenhouse gas emissions as those facilities would have to be heated.

[19 August 2019 09:50 · ben.chapman]

Oil prices have risen after Yemeni separatists carried out a drone attack on a Saudi oil field.

Brent crude rose 1 per cent to $59.22 following the attack by Yemen’s Houthi group on Saturday caused a fire at a gas plant.

Saudi Arabia's state oil company Aramco said production had not been affected.

[19 August 2019 09:58 · ben.chapman]

Brexit and fears of a shrinking economy are causing households to cancel major purchases, according to a poll.

IHS Markit's monthly Household Finance Index fell to 43.7 in August from 44.3 in July.

Worries about job security hit their highest level since March, when the UK had been set to leave the EU before an extension was agreed.

“The Brexit haze, uncertainty over the political environment and the increased possibility of the UK entering recession appear to have dented expectations,” IHS Markit economist Joe Hayes said.

[19 August 2019 10:09 · ben.chapman]

Inflation dropped to 1 per cent in the euro zone in July from 1.3 per cent in June.

The lowest annual rates were registered in Portugal (-0.7%), Cyprus (0.1%) and Italy (0.3%).

The highest annual rates were recorded in Romania (4.1%), Hungary (3.3%), Latvia and Slovakia (both 3.0%)

[19 August 2019 10:12 · ben.chapman]

[19 August 2019 10:25 · ben.chapman]

Cpnnor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex says more important for the markets than the comments of Donald Trump were those of US trade advisor Peter Navarro.

"He insisted that the ‘Fed will be lowering rates’ – the central bank is in focus this week with July’s meeting minutes on Wednesday and the Jackson Hole Symposium on Thursday – before predicting that the ECB ‘will be engaging in monetary stimulus’ and China will be ‘engaging in fiscal stimulus’."

The prospect of a number of central banks acting to stimulate economic growth has helped share prices rise this morning.