Trump softens stance on China tariff war

United States President Donald Trump on Thursday hinted at a possible de-escalation in the ongoing tariff conflict between the US and China, which has unsettled global markets, and he signalled that a deal over the fate of social media platform TikTok may have to wait.

"I don't want them to go higher because at a certain point you make it where people don't buy," Trump told reporters about tariffs at the White House.

"So, I may not want to go higher or I may not want to even go up to that level. I may want to go to less because you know you want people to buy and, at a certain point, people aren't gonna buy."

Trump's remarks suggest a reduced likelihood of broad tariff increases on numerous countries,, following the market turmoil triggered by recently imposed tariffs.

On April 2, Trump introduced a 10% tariff on a wide range of imports but postponed further hikes while negotiations continue.

As tensions persist, tariffs on Chinese goods have surged to a staggering 145%, a response to China's retaliatory measures. Although Beijing has indicated it will not engage in an escalating "numbers game with tariffs," Trump's comments reflect ongoing communication between the two nations.

While the two sides are in touch, sources told Reuters that free-flowing, high-level exchanges that would lead to a deal have largely been absent.

Speaking with reporters, Trump repeatedly declined to specify the nature of talks between the countries or whether they directly included Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Trump has repeatedly extended a legal deadline for China-based ByteDance to divest the US assets of the short video app used by 170 million Americans. On Thursday, he said a spin-off deal would likely wait until the trade issue is settled.

"We have a deal for TikTok, but it'll be subject to China so we'll just delay the deal 'til this thing works out one way or the other," said Trump.