Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sparked optimism in financial markets Tuesday when he called the tariff-driven trade war between the U.S. and China "unsustainable" and said it would likely "de-escalate."

Bessent made the comments at a closed-door meeting of investors hosted by JP Morgan Chase in Washington Tuesday, according to a report by Bloomberg. He said the two sides had not yet begun to negotiate, but that a deal was possible, the news outlet said.

In recent months, the U.S. and China have ramped up a tit-for-tat exchange of tariffs, putting higher and higher taxes on one another's exports as part of President Donald Trump's far-reaching trade war against U.S. trading partners. U.S. tariffs against China are as high as 245% on certain products, according to the White House.

Economists and business leaders have warned of far-re♔aching effects from the new trade barriers between the world's two largest economies, which are heavily intertwined. For instance, American consumers 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体ꦕ彩网:could face higher prices and shortages on certain products, such as toys.

Stock markets rallied Tuesday afternoon after Bessent's comments were reported, with the S&P 500 stock index up nearly 2% on the day. Stocks have taken a beating amid Trump's erratic tariff campaign, as he has announced, rescinded, and modified various tariffs since his inauguration. Investors and businesses have scrambled to guess 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:which t🔜ariffs are permanent barriers meant to protect U.S. industry, and which are leverage for negotiations ultimate𝓡ly leading to free trade deals.

Tuesday afternoon, Trump told reporters that he also thoug🅰ht a deal with China would be reached.

"If we don't make a deal, we'll just set the number," he said. "We're going to the golden age. ..There will never be a time like this, in my opinion. And China wants to be a part of that too."

Update, April 22, 2025: This article has been updated to include comments from President Donald Trump.