The United States and China announced Monday an agreement to drastically reduce tit-for-tat tariffs for 90 days, de-escalating a trade war that has roiled financial markets and raised fears of a global economic downturn.
After their first talks since US President Donald Trump launched his trade war, the world’s two biggest economies agreed in a joint statement to bring their triple-digit tariffs down to two figures and continue negotiations.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the weekend discussions with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and international trade representative Li Chenggang as “productive” and “robust”.
“Both sides showed a great respect,” Bessent told reporters.
Trump had imposed duties of 145 per cent on imports from China last month — compared to 10 per cent for other countries in the global tariff blitz he launched last month.
Beijing hit back with duties of 125 per cent on US goods.
The United States agreed to lower its tariffs on Chinese goods to 30 per cent while China will reduce its own to 10 per cent.
China hailed the “substantial progress” made at the talks, which were held at the discreet villa residence of Switzerland’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva.
“This move… is in the interest of the two countries and the common interest of the world,” the Chinese commerce ministry said, adding that it hoped Washington would keep working with China “to correct the wrong practice of unilateral tariff rises”.
Stock markets and the dollar, which tumbled after Trump unleashed his global tariff blitz in April, rallied after the announcement.
