U.S. President Donald Trump indicated late Thursday that his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping has reached out about a trade deal, boosting hopes that the tensions between Washington and Beijing could cool.

Trump's comments further pointed to a diminished appetite for sharply higher across-the-board tariffs on dozens of countries after markets reacted violently to their introduction on April 2.

China is facing a double whammy: corrosive deflation and tariffs that threaten to block trade. Chinese workers will be the biggest casualties.