US, Chinese officials begin pivotal trade talks in London

Qatar Tribune

6 hours ago

Agencies
China and the U.S. kicked off a new round of trade talks in London on Monday, Beijing's state media report said, as the world's two biggest economies seek to shore up a shaky truce after bruising tit-for-tat tariffs.
'On June 9, local time, Vice Premier He Lifeng ... began holding the first meeting of the China-U.S. trade consultation mechanism with the American side in London,' state news agency Xinhua reported.
Top U.S. and Chinese officials were due to meet for talks to defuse the high-stakes trade dispute that has widened in recent weeks beyond tit-for-tat tariffs to export controls over goods critical to global supply chains.
Officials from the two superpowers were expected to meet at the ornate Lancaster House to try to get back on track with a preliminary agreement struck last month in Geneva that had briefly lowered the temperature between Washington and Beijing.
The talks, which were due to start around 11:30 a.m. GMT on Monday, come at a crucial time for both economies, with investors looking for some relief from U.S. President Donald Trump's cascade of tariff orders since his return to the White House in January.
'The next round of trade talks between the U.S. and China will be held in the U.K. on Monday,' a U.K. government spokesperson said on Sunday. 'We are a nation that champions free trade and have always been clear that a trade war is in nobody's interests, so we welcome these talks.'
Gathering there will be a U.S. delegation led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and a Chinese contingent helmed by Vice Premier He Lifeng, a Reuters report said.
In Geneva, the two sides agreed to reduce steep import taxes on each other's goods that had had the effect of erecting a trade embargo between the world's No. 1 and 2 economies, but U.S. officials in recent weeks accused China of slow-walking on its commitments, particularly around rare earths shipments.
The inclusion of Lutnick, whose agency oversees export controls for the U.S., is one indication of how central rare earths has become.
He did not attend the Geneva talks, at which the countries struck a 90-day deal to roll back some triple-digit tariffs they had placed on each other.
The second round of meetings comes four days after Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke by phone, their first direct interaction since Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration.
During the more than one-hour-long call, Xi told Trump to back down from trade measures that roiled the global economy and warned him against threatening steps on Taiwan, according to a summary by the Chinese government.
But Trump said on social media that the talks focused primarily on trade led to 'a very positive conclusion,' setting the stage for Monday's meeting in London.
The next day, Trump said Xi had agreed to resume shipments of rare earth minerals and magnets to the U.S. China's decision in April to suspend exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets upended the supply chains central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor companies and military contractors around the world.
'We want China and the U.S. to continue moving forward with the agreement that was struck in Geneva,' White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told the Fox News program 'Sunday Morning Futures' on Sunday.
'The administration has been monitoring China's compliance with the deal, and we hope this will move forward to more comprehensive trade talks.'
The preliminary deal in Geneva sparked a global relief rally in stock markets and U.S. indexes that had been in or near bear market levels have recouped the lion's share of their losses.
The S&P 500 Index, which at its lowest point in early April was down nearly 18% after Trump unveiled his sweeping 'Liberation Day' tariffs on goods from across the globe, is now only about 2% below its record high from mid-February. The final third of that rally followed the U.S.-China truce struck in Geneva.
Still, that temporary deal did not address broader concerns that strain the bilateral relationship, from the alleged illicit fentanyl trade to the status of self-governed Taiwan and U.S. complaints about China's state-dominated, export-driven economic model.
While the U.K. government will provide a venue for Monday's discussions, it will not be a party for them; they will have separate talks later in the week with the Chinese delegation.
On Monday, the dollar slipped against all major currencies as investors waited for news, while oil prices were little changed.