WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the US and China have been on trade talks after Beijing denied any negotiations on tariffs.
“They had a meeting this morning,” Trump told reporters during a meeting with Norway’s Prime Minister at the White House. However, he declined to identify the Chinese representative involved, adding: “It doesn’t matter who ‘they’ is. We may reveal it later, but they had meetings this morning, and we’ve been meeting with China.”
Earlier that day, China’s Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He Yadong said there were currently no trade talks between China and the United States. “China has taken note of some recent reports in foreign media,” He said during a press conference. “As the authority responsible for foreign trade and economic relations, I would like to emphasise that there are currently no trade negotiations taking place between China and the United States. Any claims about progress in China-US trade talks are purely speculative and have no factual basis.”
On Tuesday, Trump had announced plans to reduce tariffs on China “substantially, but they won’t be zero.” At present, the US is imposing 145% import duties on Chinese goods, while China has retaliated with 125% tariffs on US products. Beijing has also implemented non-tariff measures, including restrictions on rare earth exports to the US and a halt to aircraft purchases from Boeing. The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that the Trump administration was considering reducing tariffs on China to between 50% and 65%.
When asked about Trump’s remarks on a potential tariff reduction, He said: “If the US truly wants to resolve the issues, it should heed the rational voices of the international community and various domestic sectors, completely remove all unilateral tariff measures against China, and seek to resolve differences through equal dialogue.”
Later on Thursday, Trump posted on Truth Social: “Boeing should default China for not taking the beautifully finished planes that China committed to purchase. This is just a small example of what China has done to the USA, for years...” He also wrote: “Fentanyl continues to pour into our Country from China, through Mexico and Canada, killing hundreds of thousands of our people, and it better stop, NOW!” Trump imposed 20% tariffs on China and 25% on Canada and Mexico in February for fentanyl trafficking.
Nevertheless, Trump’s apparent reversal on China tariffs and his softened stance towards Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell led to a rally in global stock markets, which rose for a fourth consecutive trading day on Thursday. Risk sentiment recovered cautiously this week, and all major global indices appeared poised to close the week on a positive note.
On Wall Street, technology stocks led the rebound amid the ongoing corporate earnings season. The S&P 500 rose 2% on Thursday, marking its highest level since 3 April – the day Trump announced the so-called reciprocal tariffs. A week later, he granted a 90-day suspension of the tariffs for all countries except China.
European markets showed particular resilience, with both the Euro Stoxx 600 and Germany’s DAX on course for a second consecutive week of gains. The DAX now sits just 6% below its all-time high reached in March.
Equities across Asia rallied on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose by more than 2%, and South Korea’s Kospi gained over 1%. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has reportedly been in discussions with both countries. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 1.5%, recouping most of its losses from earlier in April. The People’s Bank of China reiterated its commitment to maintaining a moderately loose monetary policy to support economic growth in the face of trade tensions. — Euronews
