Topline
U.S. stock futures rose early on Monday as President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance signaled they are open to a deal with China to de-escalate trade tensions, after the president threatened to impose an additional 100% tariff on Chinese goods on Friday in response to Beijing’s expansion of export controls on critical rare earth minerals.
In premarket trading early on Monday, Dow Futures rose nearly 1% to 46,143 points, while the benchmark S&P 500 Futures climbed more than 1.3% to 6,682.50 points.
The tech-centric Nasdaq Futures index saw the biggest bump, rising 1.85% to 24,840 points.
Shares of chipmaker Nvidia rose 3.49% to $189.55 in the premarket, while rivals AMD and Broadcom were up 4.17% and 3.42% respectively.
However, the prospect of renewed trade tensions weighed on Asian stocks on Monday morning as Trump’s tariff announcement was made after markets closed for the week in Asia on Friday.
Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng index closed 1.52% down on Monday, while the Shenzhen Composite and Shanghai Composite indices dropped 0.93% and 0.19% respectively.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday afternoon, Trump appeared to soften his tone on China, saying: “Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine! 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!!!”
While appearing on Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures, Vance suggested Trump’s latest tariff threat was a negotiating tactic. “It’s going to be a delicate dance, and a lot of it is going to depend on how the Chinese respond. If they respond in a highly aggressive manner, I guarantee you, the president of the United States has far more cards than the People’s Republic of China. If, however, they’re willing to be reasonable, then Donald Trump is always willing to be a reasonable negotiator.”
In a statement issued on Sunday, China’s Commerce Ministry pushed back against Trump’s tariff threat, saying: “Frequently threatening high tariffs is not the right approach to engaging with China. China's position on a tariff war is consistent: we do not want one, but we are not afraid of one…If the US persists in its own course, China will resolutely take corresponding measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.” In response to Trump’s criticism of China’s new export controls, Beijing lashed out at what it said were “double standards” by the U.S., citing controls on advanced semiconductor exports as an example.