US benchmark equity indexes ended higher Wednesday as President Donald Trump said he is willing to negotiate lower tariffs with China and backed down from threats to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

* Trump on Tuesday said he is ready to negotiate lower tariffs on imports from China, after imposing a 145% levy earlier this month. However, the president said he is unwilling to reduce tariffs on Chinese goods to zero.

Trump also looked to calm markets roiled by his threats to fire Powell because the independent Fed Chair has not lowered interest rates quickly enough to satisfy the president.

* New home sales in the US increased more than expected in March as median prices dropped, government data showed.

"We still see limited upside for sales in 2025 given our forecast for mortgage rates to remain elevated and the economy to weaken in response to the Trump administration's tariff policies," Oxford Economics said.

* June West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $1.48 to settle at $62.19 per barrel, while June Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $1.42 to $66.02 after a report said OPEC+ is considering boosting production again in June.

* Tesla (TSLA) shares rose 6.2%. The electric vehicle maker's chief executive, Elon Musk, said on an earnings conference call late Tuesday that his time allocation to the Department of Government Efficiency is expected to "drop significantly."

* Enphase Energy (ENPH) fell over 15% following a Q1 earnings

miss late Tuesday.