Dow Rises 400 on China Trade Talks

Stocks are sharply higher in midday trading on Wall Street following signs of progress in defusing the trade dispute between China and the US. Investors were encouraged to see that China was sending a trade envoy to Washington, which would be the first talks between the two countries since June, per the AP. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up more than 400 points at 12:30pm, while the Nasdaq was up 66 and the S&P 500 index was up 28.

The envoy will be part of a Chinese delegation that will come to Washington this month for talks to defuse the trade dispute. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow told reporters Thursday that the US team will be led by David Malpass, US Treasury under secretary for international affairs. Earlier, China said it would send a delegation led by a deputy commerce minister. This meeting would be the first between senior US and Chinese officials since June 3 talks in Beijing ended with no settlement. The United States has already imposed taxes on $34 billion in Chinese goods, drawing Chinese retaliation.

(More stock market stories.)