“GOOD NEWS”
The discussions are the first time senior officials from the world’s two largest economies have met face-to-face to tackle the thorny topic of trade since Trump slapped steep new levies on China last month, sparking a robust retaliation from Beijing.
The tariffs imposed by Trump on the Asian manufacturing giant since the start of the year currently total 145 per cent, with cumulative US duties on some Chinese goods reaching a staggering 245 per cent.
In retaliation, China put 125 per cent tariffs on US goods.
Ahead of the meeting, Trump signaled he might lower the tariffs, suggesting on social media that an “80% Tariff on China seems right!”
However, his press secretary Karoline Leavitt later clarified that the United States would not lower tariffs unilaterally, and that China would also need to make concessions.
Going into the meeting, both sides played down expectations of a major change in trade relations, with Bessent underlining a focus on “de-escalation” and not a “big trade deal,” and Beijing insisting the United States must ease tariffs first.
The fact the talks are even happening “is good news for business, and for the financial markets,” said Gary Hufbauer, a senior non-resident fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE).
But Hufbauer cautioned he was “very skeptical that there will be any return to something like normal US-China trade relations,” with even a tariff rate of 70 to 80 percent still potentially halving bilateral trade.
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