Wall Street's main indexes were muted in choppy trading on Friday, as investors struggled with little clarity on the U.S.-China trade front despite signs of a possible softening in Beijing's stance. On a brighter note,

U.S. stock index futures slipped on Friday as uncertainty remained high on the U.S.-China trade front despite signs of a possible softening in Beijing's stance. U.S. President Donald Trump said his administration is talking with China to strike a tariff deal and that Chinese President Xi Jinping has called him,

On a brighter note, meanwhile, shares of Google-parent Alphabet leapt 3.6% in premarket trade after the company reported upbeat first-quarter results, easing investor worries about returns on hefty artificial intelligence-focused investment.