China Wants Tariff Rollback, Lagarde Urges Spending: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) --

Welcome to Tuesday, Europe. Here's the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help get your day started:

• China is seeking the roll back of U.S. tariffs on as much as $360 billion of Chinese imports before President Xi Jinping agrees to go to the U.S. to sign a partial trade deal with President Donald Trump
• China's central bank reduced the cost of 1-year funds to banks for the first time since 2016, seeking to calm markets nervous about tightening liquidity amid a slowing economy
• When Christine Lagarde calls on governments to aid the euro-zone economy by spending more, the new European Central Bank president has an added incentive. Convincing countries such as Germany, which runs a budget surplus, to stimulate growth is now a priority for the institution
• Bloomberg Economics has built an index of uncertainty, and the main takeaway for Europe is -- the rise in uncertainty has been a key factor in pushing growth below potential and forcing the ECB into a fresh round of easing
• Australia kept interest rates unchanged Tuesday, betting that a rebound in property prices will increase household wealth and confidence and see consumers more willing to part with their cash
• India decided against joining a trade agreement covering much of Asia, paving the way for 15 other countries to sign the China-backed regional deal next year. Japan is seeking to keep India in
• Bank of Japan's Governor Haruhiko Kuroda's relative optimism over the economy suggests that keeping interest rates where they are now is the main scenario for the central bank rather than lowering them further

To contact the reporter on this story: Jiyeun Lee in Hong Kong at jlee1029@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Malcolm Scott at mscott23@bloomberg.net, Karthikeyan Sundaram

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