GLOBAL MARKETS-Stock rally stalls ahead of U.S.-China trade deal, oil gains

* Equities trade little changed ahead of deal signing

* Oil gains as trade accord seen helping growth

* Dollar edges slight higher, yen falls

By Herbert Lash

NEW YORK, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Equity markets traded little

changed globally on Tuesday as investors awaited the signing of

the China-U.S. trade deal, while oil prices rose on hopes the

agreement will help revive the world's sluggish economy.

Gold prices slid as the planned signing Wednesday of the

Phase 1 trade deal dampened the appeal of safe-haven bullion and

the Japanese yen, which dropped to eight-month lows.

MSCI's all-country world index and shares on Wall Street

backed off fresh records reached on Monday as investors said the

long-awaited trade deal has been priced into the market.

China has pledged to buy almost $80 billion of additional

manufactured goods from the United States over the next two

years as part of a trade war truce, a source told Reuters on

Monday. China would also buy over $50 billion more in energy

supplies and boost purchases of U.S. services by about $35

billion over the same two-year period, the source said.

The deal is a step in the right direction and once the

rhetoric is backed with action, further progress may be made as

these negotiations continue, said Jim Paulsen, chief investment

strategist at Leuthold Group in Minneapolis.

"However, I find a radical shift in Chinese spending

unlikely. I have low expectations for meeting stated goals,"

Paulsen said.

Peter Tuz, president of Chase Investment Counsel in

Charlottesville, Virginia, said reports of additional purchases

"was incrementally positive."

"The fact that the China thing is not getting worse and we

have an agreement is lessening one of the things that could go

wrong in 2020," Tuz said.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS

gained 0.04%, while the pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX

rose 0.22%.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose

92.09 points, or 0.32%, to 28,999.14. The S&P 500 .SPX lost

2.26 points, or 0.07%, to 3,285.87 and the Nasdaq Composite

.IXIC dropped 13.28 points, or 0.14%, to 9,260.65.

Overnight in Asia, Japan's Nikkei .N225 added 0.7% to hit

its highest level in a month. Australian shares rose by the same

margin to close at a record .AXJO .

Hong Kong's Hang Seng .HSI and Shanghai blue chips

.CSI300 also hit multi-month peaks before running out of

steam.

China's yuan was slightly weaker after earlier hitting a

high last seen in July. The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday

reversed its designation of China as a currency manipulator in

what is seen as a conciliatory gesture before the trade deal is

signed. The dollar index .DXY rose 0.08%, with the euro EUR=

down 0.08% to $1.1124. The yen JPY= weakened 0.12% versus the

greenback to 110.08 per dollar.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude rose as the trade deal

marks a major step in ending a dispute that has cut global

growth and dented crude demand.

The trade dispute has had a tangible impact on global oil

demand growth last year, said Tamas Varga, an analyst at broker

PVM. Varga pointed to 2019 demand growth of 890,000 barrels per

day (bpd), compared with initial forecasts of 1.5 million bpd.

Brent crude LCOc1 gained 38 cents to $64.58 a barrel and

West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 rose 19 cents to

$58.27 a barrel.

U.S. consumer prices rose slightly in December even as

households paid more for healthcare, and monthly underlying

inflation slowed, supporting the Federal Reserve's desire to

keep interest rates unchanged at least through this year.

The weak inflation report from the Labor Department on

Tuesday came on the heels of data last week showing a moderation

in job growth in December. Economists said these developments

were flagging a sharp slowdown in domestic demand. Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR last rose 7/32 in price

to yield 1.8231%.

U.S. Treasury drops China currency manipulator label ahead of

trade deal signing White House plans US-China Phase 1 ceremony, still no final

deal text Dec yuan-denominated exports up 9%, imports up 17.7%

Lighthizer says nearly done with translation of China trade

deal businesses hold back, U.S. consumers seen boosting

big banks' profits $12 trillion stocks market rally https://tmsnrt.rs/2tfURfX

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