President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Xinping held a phone call Thursday amid ongoing tensions between the two superpowers.

China and the U.S. have agreed to more tariff talks amid a trade standoff and concerns over rare earths, President Donald Trump said Thursday after a call with China's leader. Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke on Thursday at a time when stalled tariff negotiations between their two countries have roiled global trade.

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed significantly in April as President Donald Trump sharply escalated tariffs before pausing a large swath of the levies, U.S. Commerce Department data on Thursday showed.

In April, administration officials vowed to sign trade deals with as many as 90 countries in 90 days. The ambitious target came after Mr. Trump announced, and then rolled back a portion of, steep tariffs that in some cases meant import taxes cost more than the wholesale price of a good itself.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the administration has sent a letter to all of its trading partners ahead of a tariff deadline.