Canadian premier Mark Carney on Saturday called his talks with China's leader Xi Jinping a "turning point" in restoring their battered ties.

Carney also confirmed from the APEC summit in South Korea that he had apologized to Donald Trump over an anti-tariff ad campaign that prompted the US president to raise tariffs on Canada, AFP reported. 

Canada's relations with China have been among the worst of any Western nation, but on Friday Carney and Xi held the first formal talks between the countries' leaders since 2017, as both manage Trump's trade onslaught.

Trump last Saturday hiked tariffs on Canada by 10 percent after a "fake" anti-tariff ad campaign that featured late US president Ronald Reagan.

The US president flatly rejected any resumption of trade negotiations even after Carney said sorry for the ad.

"I did apologize to the president. The president was offended," Carney said on Saturday, while insisting he was relaxed about when talks would resume.