Global stocks finished mixed on Friday 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 percent.

“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 favored 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.

Undiplomatic approach

“If President Trump does slap tariffs back on Chinese imports to the US... we may see demand for US assets, and the dollar, severely impaired by a chaotic and undiplomatic approach to trade policy,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

Despite rumbling concerns about the US-China economic relationship, the markets were little changed by Trump’s criticism on social media, with investors appearing to be largely inured to the US president’s now-familiar cycle of making dramatic trade threats and then retreating.

Investors, traders and analysts instead focused on the Commerce Department’s personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index data, which rose 2.1 percent in the 12 months to April — cooling slightly more than expected.