Donald Trump says he may speak to Xi Jinping this week following US-China tariff agreement

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is likely to speak with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping “maybe at the end of the week” and that the talks would be great for “unification and peace”.

“The talks in Geneva were very friendly,” Trump said. “The relationship is very, very good. I’ll speak to President Xi maybe at the end of the week.”

Trump’s comments follow negotiations in Switzerland this weekend, in which the two sides agreed to reduce tariffs for 90 days. The import taxes on China imposed by the US would still remain higher than when Trump took office, at around 55 per cent, which includes tariffs that he put on imports from China during his first administration.

Trump said the two sides would set up a trade consultation mechanism and use the next 90 days to negotiate on the “largest structural issues” in their trade relationship.

The latest developments have led to a dramatic turnaround in the global trade outlook over the weekend. Although the relief is temporary on its face, the fact that the two largest economies managed to climb down from their hardline positions sent a sigh of relief through global markets.

Hopes for a broader agreement by the two sides as they continue negotiations sent stocks surging higher while bonds, gold and safe haven currencies fell.