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European stocks and US futures rose on Monday after Donald Trump appeared to take a more conciliatory tone towards China, saying that the US “wants to help China, not hurt it!!!”
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump wrote: “Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment. He doesn’t want Depression for his country, and neither do I. The U.S.A. wants to help China, not hurt it!!!”
Trump’s post came after the US president on Friday had threatened to impose additional 100 per cent tariffs on China and suggested he could cancel a planned summit with President Xi Jinping later this month.
The threat from Trump, which came in response to a package of export controls on rare earths that Beijing unveiled last week, sent the S&P 500 down 2.7 per cent on Friday, its steepest one-day drop since early April.
Early on Monday, futures tracking the S&P 500 rose 1.6 per cent, clawing back some of Friday’s drop. Futures tracking the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 were up 2.1 per cent.
In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.6 per cent in early trading, with France’s Cac 40 up 0.8 per cent and Germany’s Dax rising 0.6 per cent. The FTSE 100 was up 0.3 per cent.
In Asia, stock markets fell on Monday in spite of Trump’s more accommodative tone. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1.7 per cent, Japan’s Topix fell 1.9 per cent and Taiwan’s Taiex lost 1.4 per cent. Mainland China’s CSI 300 index closed 0.5 per cent lower.
“Asian economies are among the most exposed to trade and China uncertainties compared to other regions,” said Bum Ki Son, a senior regional economist at Barclays in Singapore.
The moves came after Beijing criticised Trump’s plan to impose additional tariffs on Chinese exports and threatened new countermeasures on Sunday. “China’s position on tariff wars has been consistent: we do not want to fight but we are not afraid to fight,” said the commerce ministry.
The price of gold, often seen as a haven asset, hit an all-time high of $4,078 a troy ounce, extending a rally in which the price has risen more than 50 per cent this year.