Key Points
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President Donald Trump claimed that China’s President Xi Jinping had called him.
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He also said that trade talks between the U.S. and China are active.
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The Chinese Embassy denied this, and the market reaction has been lukewarm.
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The stock market has been on a winning streak for the past three days, but it has started to turn lower this morning despite even softer talk on tariffs by President Donald Trump. In an interview published this morning by TIME, Trump claimed that President Xi Jinping of China had already called him and that trade talks were active.
He also said that it would be a “total victory” if the U.S. kept tariffs as high as 50% on foreign imports a year from now. China, however, says that no trade talks are taking place and tariffs remain basically unchanged on both sides, minus some exemptions on some sectors by Trump.
The stock market also doesn’t seem to be too optimistic today and ended up edging down.
Here’s a market update as of 10:00 A.M (ET) today.
- The S&P 500 is down 7.64 points, or 0.14%.
- The Nasdaq Composite is down 1.4 points, basically flat in percentage points.
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 245.81 points, or 0.61%.
Trump’s Remarks to Reporters
President Donald Trump has made the following notable comments today:
- “I spoke with China’s Xi.”
- “We will end up with lots of good deals. Tariff plan is doing very well.”
- “We’re very close to a deal with Japan.”
- “Russia and Ukraine are coming along.”
However, the Chinese Embassy said that no talks have taken place.
Trump also said the following:
- “We don’t need anything from Canada.”
- “Trade deals expected in next three to four weeks.”
- “I would veto bill with social security and medicare cuts.”
- “I don’t think budget will cut $800b from Medicaid.”
- “I love the concept of raising tax on wealthy.”
- “Bessent and Lutnick didn’t tell me to do 90-day pause.”
- “I wasn’t worried during April bond market stress.”
- “I will set a fair price of tariffs for different countries.”
His comments on trade deals and setting a “fair price of tariffs for different countries” could mean even higher tariffs are coming, though some think it is bullish, as that may mean he is open to re-adjusting tariffs downwards once the pause expires. The earlier comment on tariffs at 50% may imply otherwise.
Macros
Per the University of Michigan:
- 1-year inflation is forecasted at 6.5% vs. the 6.8% forecast and 6.7% previously.
- 5-year inflation expectations are at 4.4% and are on par with forecasts.
- Index of Consumer Sentiment is at 52.2, -32.4% year-over-year.
- Current Economic Conditions is at 59.8, -24.3% year-over-year.
- Index of Consumer Expectations is at 47.3, -37.8% year-over-year.
Other Assets
- Gold is down 1.8% to $3,288.
- Crude Oil Futures are down 0.6%.
- Natural Gas Futures are down 1.9%.
- Bitcoin is up 0.7% to $94.515.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Openverse.