Investors are hopeful that U.S.-China trade talks this weekend will cool a trade war between the world's two largest economies and dispel some of the uncertainty clouding financial markets, though few expect a major breakthrough just yet.

The United States and China are carrying out high-level diplomatic talks in Geneva, Chinese state-run media reported from the Swiss capital on Saturday.

The way President Donald Trump sees it, beating China in a trade war should be easy. After all, the Chinese sell Americans three times as much stuff as Americans sell them.