Grocers’ sales are more reliant on domestically grown food. Supermarket operator Kroger, which previously disclosed “small single-digit exposure” to inventory from China, was down 4.7 per cent in early trading. Walmart, where the bulk of US sales come from groceries, was off by 0.8 per cent.

China and the United States retreated from an emerging economic crisis on Monday, agreeing to drastically reduce tariffs on each other for the next 90 days as they continue to negotiate a more permanent trade deal,

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, Beijing's lead person for trade talks with the US, said that both countries had reached a consensus in Geneva to de-escalate the 'damaging' tariff war, urging Washington to broaden the scope of cooperation between the two sides.

Gold sold off in Asian morning trading on Monday after progress was reported between the US and China during weekend trade talks. Bullion fell 1.8 per cent to $3,265 per troy ounce following meetings between US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese vice-premier He Lifeng in Geneva over the weekend.

China's steel exports are set to slump in the second quarter, threatening to exacerbate a supply glut at home, analysts and traders said, as the trade war and a wave of protectionism moving in its wake crimps export markets.