NEW YORK: Global stocks finished mixed on Friday (May 30) after President Donald Trump put US-China trade tensions back on the boil by claiming Beijing had “totally violated” an agreement with Washington.
His social media post came hours after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said trade talks with China aimed at putting to bed sky-high mutual tariffs, currently suspended, were “a bit stalled”.
The development risks renewed trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher, while the S&P 500 index was flat, and the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3 per cent.
“If it weren’t for the trade war, the market would be feeling pretty good,” said Tom Cahill of Ventura Wealth Management.
“Inflation is definitely moving in the right direction,” he added, referencing the Federal Reserve’s favoured inflation gauge, which cooled more than expected last month, according to fresh data published Friday.
In Europe, London and Germany’s major indices ended higher, while France’s CAC40 closed lower, following declines in Asian markets earlier in the day.
