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U.S. stocks looked set to open higher on Wednesday after President Donald Trump said he was fond of his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, even though the world’s two largest economies appear to be finding it tough to broker a lasting trade truce.
Futures tracking the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 78 points, or 0.2%. S&P 500 futures and contracts tied to the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 were both also up 0.2%.
“I like President XI of China, always have, and always will, but he is VERY TOUGH, AND EXTREMELY HARD TO MAKE A DEAL WITH!!!,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social early Wednesday. The U.S. and China brokered a deal to cut tariffs in Geneva last month, but tensions have re-escalated in recent days as the two sides aim to nail down a longer-term deal.
Trump said in a separate post that the U.S. had “HAD THE BEST MAY IN 30 YEARS,” apparently in reference to the S&P 500. The blue-chip index logged its strongest May performance since 1990 last month.
The next catalyst for the market could be a fruitful call on trade between Trump and Xi, ING analyst Francesco Pesole said in a research note, although he warned that “a conciliatory tone” between the two leaders may still “not result in any real breakthrough in negotiations.”
Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report could be another big test for the market. Data published Tuesday seemed to augur well, with Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey showing there was a slight uptick in the pace of hiring last month.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was flat at 4.47% on Wednesday. The U.S. Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, was down 0.1%.
