New Delhi, Oct. 27 -- Asian shares rallied and U.S. futures jumped Monday, with Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 topping 50,000 for the first time as U.S. President Donald Trump said he expected to reach a trade agreement with China.

Work on trade deals that might alleviate friction between the U.S., China and other major trading partners has reassured investors. Officials from the world's two largest economies said Sunday that they had reached an initial consensus for Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to try to finalize during a high-stakes meeting later in the week.

"I have a lot of respect for President Xi," Trump told reporters after visiting Malaysia for a summit of Southeast Asian nations, where he reached preliminary trade agreemen...