After a long period of escalating tensions, the first cooling signal from President Donald Trump received an open response from China: "Our door to negotiations is always open".
This statement was made by China's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mr. Quach Gia Khon, at a press conference on April 23, according to China's state media outlets.
Just one day before, President Donald Trump surprised the global market by "listening" to the trade war with China. Mr. Trump said he has a good relationship with President Xi Jinping and believes that the two countries will live happily together and ideally, cooperate together.
The US tax rate on Chinese goods is at a record high of 145%. China responds with a 125% tariff on US goods.
President Donald Trump said the 145% tax rate will not last forever. He emphasized: "It will decrease significantly, but not to zero. Never 0.
The Wall Street Journal quoted sources as saying that the Trump administration is considering counterpart tariffs on Chinese goods down to only about 50-65%.
China's response showed signs of a door not being closed as many people thought. We dont want a trade war, but we are not afraid. If the US really wants to solve the problem through dialogue, it needs to end the threat and pressure, but should rely on the principle of equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit, the Times Worldwide quoted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jia Kong as emphasizing.
Positive signals, although fragile, are enough for the global financial market to flourish after gloomy months. In the trading session on April 23, European stocks increased simultaneously: CAC 40 (France) increased by 2.1%, DAX (Germany) increased by 2.5%, and FTSE 100 (UK) increased by 1.6%.
In Asia, the Nikkei 225 index (Japan) increased by 1.9%, Kospi (Korea) to 1.6% and Hang Seng (Hong Kong, China) broke out by 2.4%.
In the US, Dow Jones and S&P 500 futures have risen 1.5% and 2% respectively, a reaction that shows the market is betting on the possibility of a "calm" between the two superpowers.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its global growth forecast for 2025 to 2.8%, down 0.5%, mainly due to the impact of trade tensions. In that context, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also admitted to investors that commercial war is unsustainable and he expects a steep decline soon.
Analysts say this is a potential turning point. The market will continue to be sensitive to all the words from the White House about tariffs and negotiations. The upcoming direction is almost entirely dependent on Mr. Trump's 'inspection' - expert Tim Waterer from KCM Trade commented.
The Trump administration is negotiating trade deals with many partners and is expected to soon have updates on the progress of these deals.
