Markets Rise on Hints of Easing Trade Tensions

Markets rose on Friday, setting the stage for their fourth straight positive day, as investors continued to look for signs of easing trade tensions.The optimism was fueled, in part, on reports that China was looking into exempting some American goods from its 125 percent tariff.At the same time, the Chinese government said it was not engaged in trade negotiations with officials in Washington, pushing back against President Trump’s claim that the U.S.-China talks were underway.“The United States should not confuse the public,” a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.Markets in Asia were broadly higher, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 gaining 1.8 percent and Taiwan’s benchmark index gaining 2 percent.

In Europe, stocks were gaining ground.On Wall Street, S&P 500 futures were signaling a 0.5 percent gain when trading begins.Through Thursday, the S&P 500 was up nearly 4 percent on the week, although the index remains sharply lower since Mr.

Trump took office.News from China suggested the tit-for-tat escalation of trade barriers between Beijing and Washington could be easing.Bloomberg News reported that China was considering exempting tariffs on some critical items it imports from the United States, including medical equipment and the chemical ethane used for making some plastics.There have also been indications that China may be relenting on tariffs on semiconductors made in the United States.

China depends on foreign companies for advanced computer chips, and many in the country’s tech industry have hoped semiconductors will escape the tariffs.Earlier this month, a state-backed trade association in China said that a significant portion of advanced chips from American companies would be exempt from China’s tariffs if they were made outside the United States.Reports have circulated in Chinese media outlets and on Chinese social media this week that Beijing had decided not to subject some semiconductor-related products that were made in th...