US, China officials agree on plan to ramp down trade tensions
THE US and China de-escalated trade tensions, agreeing to a preliminary deal on how to implement the consensus the two sides reached in Geneva, negotiators for both sides said.
While the full details of their accord weren't immediately available, US negotiators said they 'absolutely expect' that issues around shipments of rare earth minerals and magnets will be resolved with the framework implementation.
'We have reached a framework to implement the Geneva consensus,' US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters in London.
The US and Chinese delegations will now take the proposal back to their respective leaders, said China's chief trade negotiator Li Chenggang, after two days of discussions that spanned nearly 20 hours in a Georgian-era mansion near Buckingham Palace.
'Once the presidents approve it, we will then seek to implement it,' Lutnick added.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said there were no other meetings scheduled, but added that the American and Chinese sides talk frequently and are able to do so whenever they need.
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Sign Up
Sign Up
The talks in London came at the urging of the Trump administration to cement a pledge the Chinese government made to ease shipments of rare earths during last month's trade talks in Geneva, which yielded a tariff truce.
The disagreement over critical mineral exports reignited open economic conflict between the US and China and raised the prospect their nascent deal could collapse, which would pose a fresh threat for the world economy.
'We do absolutely expect that the topic of rare Earth minerals and magnets with respect to the United States of America will be resolved in this framework implementation,' Lutnick said.
'Also, there were a number of measures the United States of America put on when those rare earths were not coming,' Lutnick added. 'You should expect those to come off - sort of, as President Trump said, in a balanced way. When they approve the licenses, then you should expect that our export implementation will come down as well.'
'When it comes to export controls and all those different things,' Greer said, 'in eight years of negotiating with the Chinese, I've never had a meeting where they didn't want to talk about export controls.' BLOOMBERG
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
14 minutes ago
- Straits Times
U.S. ambassador to Russia to leave post soon, says embassy
U.S. ambassador to Russia to leave post soon, says embassy MOSCOW - Lynne Tracy, the U.S. ambassador to Russia, will soon leave her post, her embassy said on Thursday, after serving through one of the most tense and difficult periods in relations between Moscow and Washington. Tracy, a career diplomat, arrived in Moscow in January 2023 and was greeted by protesters chanting anti-U.S. slogans when she went to the Foreign Ministry to present her credentials. Russia had questioned her suitability for the post, suggesting she might feel more at home in a hawkish think-tank. Her term was dominated by the Ukraine war, which plunged U.S.-Russia ties to a level described by the Kremlin last year as "below zero". She was notably involved in efforts to win the release of U.S. citizens jailed in Russia including journalist Evan Gershkovich and former marine Paul Whelan, who were eventually freed in August 2024 as part of a big East-West prisoner swap. Since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, Russia and the U.S. have launched a series of contacts aimed at improving relations. Russia's new ambassador to Washington, Alexander Darchiev, formally presented his credentials to Trump on Wednesday. Both sides say there is huge potential for business and investment deals if relations improve, though Trump has voiced frustration about Russia's war actions in Ukraine and the lack of any visible progress towards a peace deal. Tracy's tenure is likely to be similar in duration to her predecessor, John Sullivan, who served as ambassador for two years and seven months from February 2020 to September 2022. Reuters could not immediately reach the U.S. embassy in Moscow for additional comment. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
24 minutes ago
- Business Times
Investor rush for India exposure revs up block deals, IPOs
[NEW DELHI] India's market for share sales is warming up after several dull months, as companies and shareholders cash in on a buoyant stock market. The South Asian nation saw US$6.4 billion raised through share sales in May, the highest monthly total since December 2024, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Block trades worth US$5 billion were the biggest contributors, marking the busiest month for such deals since March last year. The momentum has carried into June, with at least 10 blocks raising US$1.2 billion in the first week alone. Indian stocks are now positioned for more gains after the central bank on Friday delivered a bigger-than-expected interest rate cut and injected further liquidity into the banking system. This has supported a rally that's already underway, with the benchmark NSE Nifty 50 Index rebounding from its April lows, which were triggered by concerns over US President Donald Trump's broad tariffs. 'Right now, investors are saying, 'I need exposure to India – and I need it fast,'' said Sunil Khaitan, a managing director leading financing in India at Goldman Sachs Group. 'Block trades remain the quickest and most efficient way to get that exposure.' The recent torrent of deals stands in contrast to the lull earlier in 2025, when local deals cooled off after a record-breaking year. India even ceded its position to Hong Kong as the world's second-largest market for share sales in the first three months of the year, weighed down by an unexpected slowdown in economic growth and cautious corporate earnings forecasts. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Some of the largest recent block trades include British American Tobacco's US$1.5 billion sale of tobacco manufacturer ITC's shares, Singapore Telecommunications' US$1.5 billion selldown of wireless carrier Bharti Airtel's stock and billionaire Rakesh Gangwal's US$1.4 billion disposal of shares in IndiGo's parent company. Private equity firm Carlyle Group and South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor were also among those paring their India holdings. The flurry of activity with blocks appears to be spilling over to IPOs. HDB Financial Services recently secured a nod from the securities regulator for a first-time sale that could raise US$1.5 billion. Prudential's Indian asset management venture is also nearing a filing for a listing expected to fetch as much as US$1.2 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. Better-than-expected corporate earnings and decent economic growth provide a robust backdrop for deals, which could include billion-dollar IPOs later this year, said Samarth Jagnani, Morgan Stanley's head of global capital markets for India and South-east Asia. 'The second half will be better,' he said. Despite the recovery, Indian deals remain well below last year's US$66 billion record. Total share sales – including IPOs, placements and blocks – have raised US$15.5 billion so far this year, 29% lower from the year-ago period, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. Some IPOs are also moving ahead with tamer valuations: Solar-pump maker Oswal Pumps this week said its IPO was looking to raise US$162 million, lower than what it targeted last year. 'In the last six months, we have passed on several IPOs largely on valuation grounds, even though we liked the businesses,' said Vikas Pershad, Asian equities portfolio manager at London-based asset manager M&G Investments. 'On balance, our patience has helped and in some instances, we've eventually become shareholders in names we initially passed over – and at better levels.' Still, India's share-sale proceeds this year are likely to surpass last year's levels at the current pace, according to Goldman's Khaitan. The pipeline is particularly strong in consumer technology and financial services, where 'growth stories are resonating with both domestic and global institutional investors,' he said. BLOOMBERG
Straits Times
30 minutes ago
- Straits Times
UN nuclear watchdog says Iran in breach of obligations, Iran announces counter-measures
FILE PHOTO: A flag with the logo of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) flutters in front of their headquarters in Vienna, Austria July 10, 2019. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/ File Photo VIENNA/DUBAI - The U.N. nuclear watchdog's board of governors declared Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations on Thursday and Tehran announced counter-measures, as tensions rose in the Middle East before further U.S.-Iranian nuclear talks. U.S. and Iranian officials will hold a sixth round of talks on Tehran's accelerating uranium enrichment programme in Oman on Sunday, the Omani foreign minister said on Thursday. But security fears have risen since U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday American personnel were being moved out of the region because "it could be a dangerous place" and that Tehran would not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon. The International Atomic Energy Agency's policy-making Board of Governors declared Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations for the first time in almost 20 years, raising the prospect of reporting it to the U.N. Security Council. The step is the culmination of several stand-offs between the Vienna-based IAEA and Iran since Trump pulled the U.S. out of a nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers in 2018 during his first term, after which that accord unravelled. An IAEA official said Iran had responded by informing the nuclear watchdog that it plans to open a new uranium enrichment facility. The move by Iran was among several measures being taken because of the resolution, Iranian state TV said. The IAEA official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Iran had given no further details such as the location of the site. Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesperson for Iran's atomic energy organisation, told state TV that Tehran had informed the IAEA of two countermeasures including "the upgrading of centrifuges in Fordow (enrichment plant) from first to sixth generation, which will significantly boost the production of enriched uranium". Enrichment can be used to produce uranium for reactor fuel or, at higher levels of refinement, for atomic bombs. Iran says its nuclear energy programme is only for peaceful purposes. Reiterating Iran's stance that it will not abandon the right to nuclear enrichment as a signatory to the global Non-Proliferation Treaty, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that rising tensions in the region were intended to "influence Tehran to change its position about its nuclear rights." 'POTENTIAL ISRAELI STRIKE' The Iranian official said a "friendly" country had alerted Tehran to a potential strike on its nuclear sites by arch-adversary Israel and reiterated that the Islamic Republic would not abandon its commitment to nuclear enrichment. "We don't want tensions and prefer diplomacy to resolve the (nuclear) issue, but our armed forces are fully ready to respond to any military strike," the Iranian official said. Iranian state media reported that Iran's military had begun drills earlier than planned to focus on "enemy movements". The decision by Trump to remove some personnel from the region comes at a volatile and highly sensitive moment in the oil-producing Middle East, where security has already been destabilised by the Gaza war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas that began in October 2023. Oil prices initially rose after Trump's announcement but later eased. Foreign energy companies were continuing their operations as usual, a senior Iraqi official overseeing operations in southern oilfields told Reuters on Thursday. Trump has threatened to strike Iran if the nuclear talks do not progress, and in an interview released on Wednesday said he had become less confident that Tehran would agree to stop enriching uranium. The Islamic Republic wants a lifting of the U.S. sanctions imposed on the country since 2018. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
