Markets fall as US Congress passes Hong Kong bill

Markets fell on Thursday.

The S&P 500 fell 0.2 percent, the STOXX Europe 600 fell 0.4 percent and the Nikkei 225 fell 0.5 percent.

Hopes for a US-China trade deal were bolstered by reports that China’s chief trade negotiator Liu He has invited his US counterparts for more talks.

However, the passage of a Hong Kong human rights bill by the US Congress could yet threaten the talks, with Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang saying Beijing “condemns and firmly opposes” the move.

Height Securities analyst Clayton Allen said in a note that “it seems entirely possible that any Chinese retaliation would be enough to upend negotiations as Trump tries desperately to maintain the upper hand in leverage”.