Headline indices of the Mainland China equity market spurted on Monday, 18 February 2019, as investor risk appetite increased amid optimism for a deal on the US-China trade war and new data showed Beijing's attempts to boost investment led to record new loans in January. At closing bell, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index added 2.53%, or 67.86 points, to 2,750.25. The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, rose 3.48%, or 48.34 points, to 1,437.81. The blue-chip CSI300 index dropped rose 3.05%, or 101.49 points, to 3,440.49.

Mainland China stocks received a lift after Wall Street surged on Friday as the United States and China reported progress in five days of negotiations in Beijing last week. After the markets closed on Friday, China and the U.S. announced plans to resume trade negotiations in Washington, fueling hopes that both countries were edging toward a deal.

“We feel we have made headway on very, very important and difficult issues,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said, in a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Xi expressed hope for “a mutually beneficial and win-win agreement,” according to the media reports.

A tariffs truce expires March 2 and will leave the U.S. free to more than double import taxes on $200 billion in Chinese goods. US President Donald Trump has suggested he may extend the deadline these if the country was close to a deal with China but has offered no firm guarantee. President Donald Trump has said he may hold off on these if the country was close to a deal with China.

China's banks made the most new loans on record in January as policymakers try to jumpstart sluggish investment and prevent a sharper slowdown in the world's second-largest economy.

CURRENCY NEWS: China's yuan climbed up against the U.S. dollar on Monday, after China and the United States agreed to carry on negotiating for a trade deal ahead of a looming March 1 deadline for an agreement, with U.S. President Donald Trump hinting at a truce extension. The People's Bank of China set the daily midpoint rate at 6.7659 per dollar prior to market open, weaker than the previous fix of 6.7623. Spot yuan was changing hands at 6.7558 at midday, 192 pips stronger than the previous late session close and 0.15 percent firmer than the midpoint of the yuan's trading band.