Tesla's Chinese Rivals Xpeng, Li Auto, Nio Rise In Premarket Trading After Trump's 'Friendly Conversation' With Xi Jinping: '…We Have One Very Big Power Over China…I'd Rather Not Have To Use It'

U.S.-listed shares of Chinese EV startups Li Auto Inc. LI, Nio Inc. NIO, and Xpeng Inc. XPEV rose as much as 3.2% in premarket trading on Friday after President Donald Trump said in an interview with Fox News that he would rather not use tariffs against China.

What Happened: Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping had a phone call before the former took office on Monday.

In an interview with Fox News aired on Thursday, Trump said that he had a “friendly conversation” with the Chinese president and that he would rather not use tariffs against the country.

“But we have one very big power over China, and that’s tariffs, and they don’t want them, and I’d rather not have to use it, but it’s a tremendous power over China,” Trump said in the interview, as quoted by Reuters.

Trump has warned of a 25% tariff on Canada and Mexico starting Feb. 1. However, he has not yet imposed tariffs on China.

Price Action: While NASDAQ-listed shares of Li Auto are up by 1.5% in premarket trading, NYSE-listed Nio shares are up by 1.9% as of the time of writing. NYSE-listed Xpeng shares, meanwhile, are up by a whopping 3.2%, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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