Trump open to trade talks with China, but first move is unclear

President Trump wants to strike a trade deal with China to stop tit-for-tat tariffs, the White House said Friday, though it offered no sign the U.S. planned to make the first move.

China increased its tariff on American goods to 125% in response to Mr. Trump’s decision to gradually increase the levy on Chinese goods to 145%.

“The president has made it very clear he’s open to a deal with China,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

However, she would not say if Mr. Trump would pick up the phone first or let Chinese President Xi Jinping make the first move, leaving an impasse.

“The tariff rate on China remains where it was yesterday, at the 145% level,” she said. “When the United States is punched, he will punch back harder.”

Stocks rose Friday as investors took stock of the trade terrain and tried to end a topsy-turvy week on a high note.

While the U.S. and China are locked in the tariff escalation, Mr. Trump agreed to a 90-day pause of reciprocal tariffs on other nations, citing their willingness to negotiate, though left in place a blanket 10% tariff on all imports and levies on steel, aluminum and autos.

Mr. Trump said he hit pause due to turbulence in the markets, even as his deputies pointed to progress in getting other nations to reduce their trade barriers.

“We are doing really well on our TARIFF POLICY. Very exciting for America, and the World!!! It is moving along quickly,” Mr. Trump posted Friday on Truth Social.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said was to speak with representatives from Israel and Taiwan on Friday.

“I have a full dance card,” he told “Fox & Friends.”

Wall Street and financial pros are having a hard time digesting Mr. Trump’s sweeping moves to upend the global trade structure.

Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, said in a quarterly earnings report Friday that “uncertainty and anxiety about the future of markets and the economy are dominating client conversations.”

“We’ve seen periods like this before when there were large, structural shifts in policy and markets — like the financial crisis, COVID and surging inflation in 2022,” he said.

Mr. Trump said high tariffs could be reimposed on nations if they cannot strike a deal with the U.S.

For now, the Washington-Beijing relationship is in the spotlight.

China’s Finance Ministry said it would fight “to the end” in the trade spat. The Chinese officials also said the tariff levels are so high, there is “no market acceptance” for U.S. goods in China, so Beijing would ignore future tariff increases.

“The U.S.’ repeated imposition of abnormally high tariffs on China has become a numbers game, which has no practical economic significance,” the ministry said. “It will only further expose the U.S.’ use of tariffs as an instrument and weapon to bully, and coerce and become a joke. If the U.S. continues to play the numbers game of tariffs, China will ignore it.”

Mr. Greer said China’s decision to increase tariffs on U.S. goods was “not terribly surprising but certainly unfortunate” as the administration pushes to negotiate with other nations while isolating Beijing.

The administration is “obviously sensitive” to the potential for price increases on electronics, toys and other items, given U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods that range from 125% to 145%, Mr. Greer said.

But, he said, it is important for the U.S. to continue to diversify its supply chains away from China.

“If we can only maintain our standards of living by being dependent on China, who is a strategic adversary, that’s a very dangerous position to be in, so we need to accelerate this,” Mr. Greer said.