American Business Group Lauds U.S.-China Trade Agreement; Stocks Soar
A top American group that advances U.S.-China business today lauded a bilateral agreement announced over the weekend to lower tariffs which have wreaked havoc on trade between the world's two biggest economies.
'Today's announcement is a positive step that will allow some trade between the two countries to resume and avoid some of the worst effects of what (U.S. Treasury) Secretary Bessent called a bilateral trade 'embargo,' U.S.-China Business Council President Sean Stein said in a statement today.
'We are eager to see the two sides taking more steps to reduce the remaining tariffs, which hurt both economies and raise prices for businesses and consumers in both countries,' he said. Washington, D.C.-based U.S.-China Business Council members include FedEx, Qualcomm and Visa.
Chinese shares traded in the U.S. soared on Monday after the Washington and Beijing announced a 90-day reduction in tariffs imposed by the two sides in the aftermath of 'Liberation Day' increases by the Trump administration earlier this year. E-commerce leaders Alibaba rose by 5%, PDD – owner of popular site Temu – gained 6%, and Baidu climbed by 5%.
The White House in a statement on Monday declared a 'historic trade win for the United States.' The U.S. agreed to cut tariffs on Chinese imports from 145% to 30%; China would lower its import duties on U.S. goods from 125% to 10%, reports said. The two countries agreed to set up a 'mechanism' to continue negations.
'We are encouraged that the two sides are now in dialogue,' Stein said. 'We look forward to further steps being taken by China to stop the flow of fentanyl into the United States and to honor its 'phase one' trade deal commitments, including measures to level the playing field for U.S. companies in China,' he said. 'A 90-day suspension, while welcome, still creates significant uncertainty for U.S. companies' business planning and costs, undermining their long-term global competitiveness,' Stein also noted.
China's reaction to the talks was also positive. 'The positive outcomes of the latest talks reaffirm that for major countries, equal and constructive dialogue -- not confrontation -- is the only effective way to address differences,' Xinhua News Agency said in a commentary.
'Given the distinct national contexts and priorities, disagreements are to be expected. What matters most is that such differences are managed with mutual respect for each other's core interests and through sustained dialogue,' the agency said.
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