By Rebecca Ballhaus 

BIARRITZ, France -- President Trump said China called U.S. officials on Sunday evening and said "let's get back to the table," a day after the White House said the president regretted not escalating tariffs further on Chinese goods.

Speaking to reporters alongside Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, Mr. Trump called the discussions a "very positive development."

"They want to make a deal," he said. "That's a great thing."

On Monday, global stocks and government bond yields fell as the recent escalation in tensions between the U.S. and China cast fresh doubt on growth prospects.

Mr. Trump also said Monday that French President Emmanuel Macron had asked him before inviting Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to come to Biarritz on Sunday. Mr. Zarif's unexpected arrival appeared to catch the president's aides off guard. A day earlier, a person familiar with the matter said the president suspected Mr. Zarif might come but that the White House hadn't been given an official heads up.

A close aide to Mr. Macron said the US had been informed beforehand about Mr. Zarif's visit to Biarritz.

"I spoke to President Macron yesterday. I knew everything he was doing," Mr. Trump said. Of Mr. Zarif, he said, "I thought it was too soon to meet. I said I don't want to meet right now."

A spokesman for Mr. Zarif said upon his touchdown in Biarritz that he wouldn't be meeting with the U.S. delegation. The foreign minister met with Mr. Macron and other French officials and briefed the U.K. and Germany.

The renewed optimism from Mr. Trump about a trade deal with China comes as tensions have risen in recent days. On Friday, Beijing imposed new levies on U.S. goods, prompting the president to respond by increasing tariffs on Chinese goods.

"We don't need China and, frankly, would be far better off without them, " Mr. Trump tweeted on Friday. The president also directed U.S. companies doing business with China to explore relocating, an order he lacks the authority to give. Mr. Trump has said he might rely on the Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, which allows the president to block individual companies' actions -- but only if he declares a national emergency first.

Later that evening, Mr. Trump left Washington for the Group of Seven summit here, where he has met with world leaders who have decried his tariffs and pressured him to end the trade war, saying it has hampered global economic growth and weakened alliances.

On Sunday, the president whiplashed the summit here as he suggested he was having "second thoughts" about escalating his trade war with China, only to have the White House issue a statement hours later saying the president's only regret was that he hadn't increased tariffs on China further.

Mr. Trump on Monday also praised Chinese President Xi Jinping. "One of the reasons that he's a great leader, Xi, and one of the reasons China's a great country is they understand how life works," he said.

Mr. Trump said the U.S. had received two calls from China but declined to say if he was speaking directly with Mr. Xi.

-- Noemie Bisserbe contributed to this article.

Write to Rebecca Ballhaus at Rebecca.Ballhaus@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 26, 2019 04:47 ET (08:47 GMT)