The dollar steadied Tuesday as investor confidence improved after President Donald Trump signalled a softer stance on tariffs and a possible meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Reuters reported. The move eased fears of an escalating trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies.

Currency markets were calmer after a turbulent end to last week, when Trump abruptly announced plans for 100% tariffs on Chinese exports to the United States before striking a more conciliatory tone over the weekend. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday the president still intends to meet Xi in South Korea later this month, a development traders hope could reopen dialogue between Washington and Beijing.

The greenback held its ground against major peers, keeping the euro below $1.16 at 1.1566. Sterling dipped slightly to $1.3328, while the New Zealand dollar slipped to a six-month low of $0.5714. The dollar index edged 0.04% higher to 99.34.

“There is a mutual desire, or some sort of an off-ramp, to prevent bilateral relations from spiralling out of control,” said Homin Lee, senior macro strategist at Lombard Odier. “Both sides understand that a re-escalation path without an endgame could be too punitive.”

In Asian trading, the yen weakened about 0.2% to 152.57 per dollar after Japan’s markets reopened from a long weekend. Political uncertainty resurfaced in Tokyo after the ruling coalition’s junior partner withdrew its support for Sanae Takaichi’s bid to become Japan’s first female prime minister.

Elsewhere, the Australian dollar was little changed at $0.6516.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin slipped 0.36% to 115,380.19 US dollars after a sharp decline last week, while ether dropped 0.77% to $4,256.42. Data showed nearly $19 billion in leveraged crypto positions were liquidated on Friday amid panic selling and thin liquidity.