Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke over phone on Thursday, according to an official report from Xinhua News Agency. The call comes amid ongoing trade tensions between the two nations, which have significantly impacted relations between the world’s two largest economies.
This marked the first known formal conversation between the two leaders since Trump took office. The last reported exchange between Xi and Trump occurred in January, prior to the U.S. president’s inauguration.
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Following the report of the phone call, U.S. equity futures surged to a session high, reports bloomberg. Relations between the U.S. and China have deteriorated recently, with both sides accusing each other of breaching a trade truce that had resulted in a reduction of tariffs. With the new tensions threatening the fragile peace, market analysts expressed hope that the phone call could help pave the way for a resolution.
Trump has long insisted that direct negotiations with Xi are essential to resolving the ongoing trade dispute. However, Xi has been more hesitant to engage directly, preferring that advisers handle the key discussions. Earlier this week, Trump has described Chinese President Xi Jinping as “VERY TOUGH” and “EXTREMELY HARD TO MAKE A DEAL WITH. In a social media post, Trump expressed his respect for Xi, stating, “I like President Xi of China, always have, and always will,” but emphasised the difficulty in negotiating with the Chinese leader. Last week, a U.S. trade court ruled that President Trump had exceeded his authority by imposing most of his tariffs on imports from China and other nations under an emergency powers act. However, less than 24 hours later, a federal appeals court intervened, reinstating the tariffs. The court explained that it was temporarily pausing the trade court’s ruling to review the government’s appeal.