Wall Street points modestly higher as Trump floats lighter China tariffs ahead of weekend talks

Wall Street pointed modestly higher before the opening bell as investors pored over the latest corporate earnings ahead of weekend trade talks between China and the U.S.

Markets initially seemed indifferent to what appeared to be a de-escalation of the U.S.-China trade rift by President Donald Trump, who floated cutting tariffs on China from 145% to 80%.

“80% Tariff on China seems right! Up to Scott B,” Trump wrote on social media early Friday, referring to Scott Bessent, his Treasury chief and point person on the trade talks.

Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.2%, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% higher. Nasdaq futures rose 0.3%

Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will meet with their Chinese counterparts in Geneva this weekend amid growing U.S. market anxiety over the impact of the tariffs on the prices and supply of consumer goods.

Also early Friday, China reported that its exports rose at a faster-than-expected 8.1% annual pace in April, down from 12.4% the month before. Exports to the United States dropped more than 20%, however, as Trump’s steep tariff increases took effect.

China is the world’s biggest exporter and second largest economy.

In premarket equities trading Friday, shares of the travel website Expedia fell 10% after it trimmed its full-year bookings forecast. The owner of Vrbo and Hotels.com highlighted a 7% decline in travel demand to the U.S., including a 30% decline in bookings from Canada.

Other travel-related companies, including Hilton and Airbnb, have reported a similar softening in travel demand to the U.S. in their recent earnings reports.

Elsewhere, in Europe at midday, Germany’s DAX gained 0.6%, while the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.7%. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.3%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4% to 22,867.74, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.3% to 3,342.00.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.6% to 37,503.33, while the Kospi in Seoul dipped 0.1% to 2,577.27.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.5% to 8,231.20.

Taiwan’s Taiex surged 1.8% and India’s Sensex fell 1.1%.

U.S. benchmark crude oil gained $1.23 to $61.14 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent crude, the international standard, added $1.19 to $64.03 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar fell to 145.25 Japanese yen from 145.91 yen. The euro rose to $1.1254 from $1.1220.