In This Article:
* MSCI ex-Japan near 1 month highs, Nikkei, KOSPI up too
* Trump says to help ZTE "get back into business, fast"
* Malaysian financial markets to open Monday after election
By Swati Pandey
SYDNEY, May 14 (Reuters) - Asian shares held near one-month highs on Monday on signs the United States and China were toning down their trade war rhetoric, while the dollar dipped again as investors wagered on a slower pace of U.S. interest rate hikes.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.07 percent, on track for a third straight day of gains and within striking distance of one-month high.
Japan's Nikkei tacked on 0.1 percent while South Korea's KOSPI index climbed 0.3 percent.
Investor sentiment was bolstered after U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to help Chinese telecom company ZTE Corp to "get back into business, fast", news that JPMorgan analysts said was "a significant positive."
ZTE suspended its main operations earlier this month following a U.S. ban forbidding American companies from supplying to it after the Chinese firm was found to have violated U.S. export restrictions by illegally shipping U.S. goods to Iran.
But Trump held out a helping hand on Sunday as he tweeted he and Chinese President Xi Jinping are working together on a solution for ZTE.
Separately, U.S. officials are preparing for talks in Washington with China's top trade official Liu He to resolve an escalating trade dispute.
"The fact Trump is now...working to find a resolution for ZTE marks the latest sign of thawing in Beijing-Washington relations," JPMorgan said in a note.
"This suggests that Trump might see the chance for real progress on trade talks, and is softening the U.S. position on an issue important to China," it added.
"Trump also needs China to remain on side ahead of his meeting with North Korea's Kim and this also suggests that until the 12 June meeting the signalling from the U.S. on trade will be more positive."
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has scheduled the dismantlement of the country's nuclear bomb test site for next week, ahead of his June 12 meeting with Trump in Singapore.
The United States has said it will lift sanctions on Pyongyang if North Korea agrees to completely dismantle its nuclear weapons program.
Strong corporate earnings in the current reporting season along with expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will hike rates at a slower pace have also bolstered market sentiment in recent sessions.
On Wall Street, the Dow ended Friday 0.4 percent higher. The S&P 500 added 0.2 percent, while the Nasdaq was barely changed.