China’s President Xi Jinping (R) and US President Donald Trump visit the Temple of Heaven in Beijing on May 14, 2026. Xi warned Trump that the issue of Taiwan could push their two countries into “conflict” if mishandled, a stark opening salvo as a superpower summit set to tackle numerous thorny issues began in Beijing on May 14. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
Brendan Smialowski | Afp | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were mostly set to rise Friday, as investors tracked the second day of high-stakes talks between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for the closely watched summit, joined by a delegation of American business leaders, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia chief Jensen Huang.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was poised to rise, with the Chicago and Osaka futures contracts at 63,100, compared with the index’s previous close of 62,654.05.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 26,341, slightly below the index’s last close of 26,389.04.
In Australia, futures last traded at 8,720, above the S&P/ASX 200‘s last close of 8,640.7.
Xi warned Trump on Thursday that Washington and Beijing could face “clashes and even conflicts” if the sensitive issue of Taiwan independence is mishandled.
Failure to handle the matter “properly” could place “the entire relationship in great jeopardy,” Xi was quoted as saying.
U.S. stock futures were little changed on Thursday night. Dow futures fell by 10 points, or 0.02%. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.02%, and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.06%.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average retook 50,000 after strong earnings from Cisco Systems. The 30-stock index popped 370.26 points, or 0.75%, to end at 50,063.46.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.77% and closed at 7,501.24, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.88% to 26,635.22. Those two indexes scored fresh all-time intraday highs and record closes.
— CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report