China and US to Resume High-Level Economic Talks Amid Tariff Tensions

By Staff, Agencies

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent have agreed to hold a new round of in-person economic talks next week, following a video call on Saturday aimed at easing rising trade tensions between Beijing and Washington.

Bessent said on X that he had “frank and detailed discussions regarding trade between the United States and China” with He, adding that both sides agreed to meet face-to-face next week to continue the dialogue.

According to a statement from Beijing, the two governments decided to convene the next round of economic and trade consultations “as soon as possible.” The statement said both sides held “candid, in-depth, and constructive exchanges on implementing the important consensus reached by the two heads of state during their phone talks since the start of this year and on key issues in bilateral economic and trade relations.”

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer also joined the virtual meeting.

The talks come after a turbulent week in US-China relations, sparked by President Donald Trump’s threat to impose an additional 100% tariff on Chinese imports in response to Beijing’s new export restrictions.

On October 10, China expanded its rare earth export controls to include minerals used for military purposes — the first time Beijing has applied such restrictions. In turn, Trump warned of “massive” new tariffs on Chinese goods, though he later suggested he might reconsider.

When asked in a Fox Business interview on Thursday whether the threatened 100% tariff could be sustained, Trump replied, “It’s not sustainable, but that’s what the number is.” He added, “It’s probably not… you know, it could stand, but they forced me to do that. I think we’re going to do fine with China.”