Fresh sparring between Washington and Beijing over trade kept up pressure on world markets yesterday, with equities struggling and emerging currencies mostly weaker, led by the Indian rupee hitting a record low.

A bruising session in Asia took MSCI’s main Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index to a 10th straight day in the red, its longest losing streak since September 2000.

Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo all closed lower, taking emerging equities to a new 15-month low.

MSCI’s all-country equity index inched up marginally, looking to extend two sessions of modest gains that had snapped six straight days of losses.

The months-long escalation in tensions between the world’s two biggest economies shows no sign of letting up. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the United States was taking a tough stance with China. That cemented expectations that new levies on Chinese exports will soon be announced.

In Europe, a pan-European index rose 0.2 per cent off recent five-month lows though it gave up earlier strong gains. The trade rows and higher US interest rates have pushed an index of emerging currencies almost seven per cent lower this year. The yuan touched two-and-a-half week lows against the dollar, leading Asian peers lower and keeping the Australian dollar close to its lowest since February 2016.

The dollar inched down against a basket of currencies as hopes grew of concessions by Canada that would resolve disputes over reworking the North American Free Trade Agreement.

But emerging currencies stayed under pressure. While the worst-hit Turkish lira and Argentine peso have steadied off record lows, the Indian rupee is continuing to plumb new troughs, taking year-to-date losses versus the dollar to more than 12 per cent.

Meanwhile, oil prices extended Tuesday’s $2 surge, with Brent futures close to $80 a barrel as Hurricane Florence advanced and US sanctions started weighing on Iran’s exports.