Asia-based delivery service provider Grab Holdings (GRAB +4.62%) continued to deliver for investors on Monday. Notching another day of gains, the company's shares closed nearly 5% higher.
That was on the back of lingering optimism about a partnership with an autonomous driving company, and apparent progress in top-level trade negotiations between Chinese and U.S. government officials. Grab's Monday pop trounced the S&P 500 index, which inched up by 1.2%.
Forward motion
As last week came to a close Grab announced that it and May Mobility, a developer of self-driving automotive solutions, were deepening their existing partnership. The two will combine to roll out autonomous vehicle services throughout Grab's home region of Southeast Asia.
What's more, May Mobility will invest capital in its partner, although neither an exact financial amount nor resultant shareholding was disclosed.
Compounding that, negotiators from the U.S. and Chinese governments reported significant progress in their talks aimed at reaching deals on bilateral trade (including, one hopes, tariffs). If accurate, these could set the stage for President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to possibly ease the currently escalating trade dispute between the two countries.
Continent-wide effect
While Grab is based in Singapore and not China, any improvement in America's trade stance on the massive Asian country is sure to benefit business on the continent as a whole. This plus the exciting autonomous vehicle news is giving investors solid reasons to invest in the stock; we'll see how those trade talks in particular turn out.
