London (CNN Business) 1. Trade talks: US stock futures were pointing higher ahead of more trade talks between the United States and China.

Top negotiators from the two countries are set to meet on Thursday in Washington, where they'll try to close gaps on issues including China's currency and market access for US companies.

President Donald Trump has indicated that he is prepared to extend his self-imposed deadline if an agreement is close. If he doesn't, tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods will go from 10% to 25% on March 2.

2. Another trade threat: Volkswagen VLKAF CEO Herbert Diess has warned about damage to his company from potential US tariffs on imported cars.

Diess told the Financial Times that he agreed with an analyst estimate that import tariffs would cost Volkswagen €2.5 billion ($2.8 billion) a year.