China Is Winning the Trade Talks With Trump

Newsweek

30-07-2025

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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The U.S.'s latest round of trade talks with China concluded in Stockholm on Monday without much headway in the trade war between the world's two largest economies.
While U.S. negotiators continue to use tough rhetoric, including the threat of secondary sanctions to discourage China from fueling Russia's war against Ukraine, geopolitical analysts say President Donald Trump's administration is at a disadvantage in the negotiations.
Newsweek has contacted the White House for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Trump dramatically escalated economic tensions in April. Citing unfair Chinese trade practices and promising to revitalize U.S. manufacturing, he announced heavy tariffs on Chinese goods. The move rattled global supply chains and prompted swift retaliation from Beijing, which introduced its own tariffs and a suite of other tit-for-tat measures.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who led the U.S.'s negotiating team in Stockholm, called the talks productive but said it was up to the president to extend the 90-day pause agreed to in May on the most severe tariffs. A trade truce between the countries is set to expire on August 12.
What To Know
Trump has already surrendered too much negotiating power in his pursuit of a sweeping deal with China, critics say.
This includes the administration's recent decision to reverse restrictions on exports of Nvidia's H20 chips.
The H20 is one of many chips to be restricted in a bid to slow China's progress in artificial intelligence—viewed by Washington as a national security threat given Beijing's policy of military-civil fusion.
Additionally, the U.S. Commerce Department has been instructed to hold off on imposing new export controls on China, in what officials describe as an effort to keep trade talks on track, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing both former and current U.S. officials.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on November 9, 2017.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on November 9, 2017.
Andy Wong/Associated Press
Other alleged concessions center on Taiwan, the self-governed island that China claims as its territory and has vowed to unify with, by force if necessary.
The Trump administration has blocked Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te from making a brief stopover in New York during a planned trip to visit Taiwan's diplomatic allies in Latin America, according to the Times, which cited multiple sources.
Both Lai's predecessors and Lai himself in his previous role as vice president were permitted to make brief stopovers in the U.S., during which they met with supporters and officials.
A separate report from the British paper said a planned meeting between the Taiwanese Defense Minister Wellington Koo and the U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby was canceled at the last minute last month.
Newsweek was unable to independently confirm either of these reports.
The move sparked criticism from prominent China watchers, who warned against using the self-ruled democracy and key trade partner as a bargaining chip.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., told Newsweek that he was not aware of the details of the reports.
He emphasized Beijing's firm opposition to visits to the U.S. by Taiwanese leaders, invoking the "one China" policy—which holds that the government in Beijing is the sole legal government of China.
China's concessions during the talks have been limited by comparison. They include designating two more chemicals as precursors to fentanyl, the powerful opioid behind the U.S. overdose crisis that has become a sticking point in bilateral ties—with Washington pressing Beijing to do more to stem the flow of the drug into the U.S.
Following the first round of talks in May, China also announced it would ease some restrictions on rare earth magnets, which are vital for a range of both military and civilian technologies. However, the U.S. and other countries continue to complain of ongoing delays in the export of these resources.
Beijing weaponized its dominance over rare earths in April by curbing exports in response to Trump's tariff salvos.
What People Are Saying
Li Chenggang, the Chinese vice minister of commerce and international trade representative, told state media: "Both sides had candid communication regarding each other's important economic and trade concerns. … The two sides will continue to push for the extension of the pause on 24 percent of reciprocal tariffs of the U.S. side, as well as counter measures of the Chinese side."
David Sacks, a fellow for Asia studies at the Council of Foreign Relations, wrote in an article: "The cancellation of President Lai's transit, paired with the Trump administration's decision to allow Nvidia to sell its H20 inference chip to Chinese customers and to freeze planned export controls, suggests that the administration is pausing any actions that China may find offensive in favor of setting the table for a meeting between Trump and Xi."
What Happens Next
Trump administration officials have suggested that an in-person meeting between the president and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, is likely by the end of the year.
On Monday, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he would consider such a meeting only if Xi extended an invitation, adding, "otherwise, no interest!"