Stock markets rose on Wednesday, despite an early morning social media complaint from U.S. President Donald Trump that Chinese President Xi Jinping was “hard to make a deal with,” and a doubling of steel and aluminum tariffs.
“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 Wednesday morning in a post on Truth Social.
The U.S. also increased its tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50%, up from 25%. The only country to escape the tariff hike was the U.K., which will enjoy a mere 25% tax on its steel and aluminum exports due to ongoing trade negotiations.
S&P 500 futures were up 0.2% as of 4:30am Eastern Time. The STOXX Europe 600 was up 0.4%.
Trump’s post came after several markets in Asia-Pacific had already closed.
South Korea’s KOSPI rose 2.7% after voters elected left-wing candidate Lee Jae-myung to the presidency. Taiwan’s Taiex index also jumped 2.3%, driven up by a 4.2% jump in TSMC shares.
Both Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose just under 1%. Mainland China’s CSI 300 rose 0.4%.
Hong Kong trimmed morning gains after Trump made his post, yet the city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index still closed up 0.6%. India’s NIFTY 50 was up 0.3%, as of 4:30am Eastern Time.
‘Hard to make a deal with!’
Wednesday’s Truth Social post was the president’s second social media complaint against China in the past week. On Friday, Trump claimed that Beijing had “totally violated its agreement” with the U.S.
Both Beijing and Washington have traded barbs in recent days, each accusing the other of undermining a trade deal negotiated last month in Geneva.
Amid the furore, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has dropped hints of a call between Trump and Xi, saying Sunday that he expected a conversation to happen “very soon.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday that “the two leaders will likely talk this week.” Xi has, as of now, left U.S.-China trade negotiations to his advisors.
At Geneva, the White House claimed that China had agreed to roll back some of its non-tariff barriers (without providing specifics). Those measures may be a new sticking point for Trump officials, who now complain that Beijing is being slow to approve rare earth mineral exports to the U.S.
China is the source for almost 70% of these metals, used in semiconductors, autos, electronics, and aviation.
Beijing has imposed export controls on these metals in response to similar measures passed by the U.S. and its allies. Most recently, Beijing expanded its controls on rare earths in response to Trump’s steep tariffs on Chinese goods.
Other business groups based in China instead suggest that Beijing—much newer to the export control game compared to the U.S.—is still trying to set up a system for licensing and approving exports of controlled goods.
Still, fears over access to rare earth metals are pushing some automakers to consider moving some plants to China, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources familiar with the situation.
China, too, is annoyed with U.S. actions since Geneva. It points to expanded export controls to cover chip design software and aviation equipment, and measures targeting Chinese students in the U.S. as proof Washington isn’t living up to its promises.
