BlackRock’s Fink: U.S. a short-term ‘big winner’ in China trade war

By Kate Duguid and Jennifer Ablan

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Larry Fink, chief executive of BlackRock (N:), the world’s largest asset manager, on Thursday said the United States is “a big winner” in the trade war with China “in the short-term,” but not necessarily over time.

Fink, speaking at Yahoo (NASDAQ:) Finance’s second annual “All Markets Summit,” said the United States is currently the dominant force in the trade war because U.S. companies are benefiting from the strong dollar, driving U.S. stocks up, while equities have fallen elsewhere. In the long term, however, trade tensions will hurt the United States as they are leading more non-American companies to China, Fink said.

Still, Fink said he did not expect China’s renminbi to become a global currency of choice anytime soon, even though U.S. President Donald Trump’s protectionist policies may benefit the country in the long-term.

Fink also said he is worried about U.S. unilateralism. “The world is probably economically less safe.”

BlackRock’s $6.3 trillion assets under management make the New York-based firm one of the most influential voices on investing worldwide. Fink was the first speaker at the event, addressing a group that included investors, executives and journalists.

For U.S. companies to be successful in coming years, they must consider their position on social and political issues, said Fink. Millennial consumers and employees want to associate with brands that they believe in, he said. Companies like Nike Inc (N:), which recently launched an ad campaign featuring football player and racial-injustice activist Colin Kaepernick, Fink said, are succeeding on that front.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.