The U.S. and China have reached a preliminary agreement on fentanyl and shipping levies, following two days of extensive talks, a Chinese official said, signalling a possible easing of tensions between the world’s largest economies, Bloomberg reported.
Chinese Trade Representative Li Chenggang stated on Sunday that the discussions were constructive, covering issues such as export controls, extending the tariff truce, and expanding bilateral trade.
Li described the talks as intense and the US position as tough, but hailed progress in the talks. Both sides will now report the outcome back to their leaders ahead of a planned summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday.
“The current turbulences and twists and turns are the ones that we do not wish to see,” Li told reporters, adding that a stable China-US trade and economic relationship is good for both countries and the rest of the world, according to the report.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent earlier told reporters in Kuala Lumpur that the talks were “constructive, far-reaching and in-depth” and created a “very positive framework” for the leaders to meet. He did not mention any agreement on new US port fees on Chinese ships that has emerged as a new source of friction in ties.
The negotiations took place at the skyscraper Merdeka 118 as Trump met with Southeast Asian leaders at a nearby convention center. The US president signed a deal with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on trade and critical minerals as Washington looked to boost trade across the region and respond to China’s tightening of access to rare earths.
The Chinese delegation was led by Vice Premier He Lifeng and included Vice Finance Minister Liao Min. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was part of the US team.
Trump landed in Malaysia on Sunday to begin his first tour of the region during his second term. He oversaw the signing of a peace declaration between Thailand and Cambodia. Under the deal, the US is agreeing to “a major trade deal with Cambodia and a very important critical minerals agreement with Thailand,” Trump said.
The US president is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings later in Japan and South Korea, where he’s also anticipated to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
Trump, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, said he hopes the talks with Xi would yield “a complete deal.”
The meeting would be the first face-to-face between the leaders of the two biggest economies this year. Trump has said direct talks are the best way to resolve issues including tariffs, export curbs, agricultural purchases, fentanyl trafficking, geopolitical flashpoints such as Taiwan and the war in Ukraine.
“We’ll be talking about a lot of things. I think we have a really good chance of making a very comprehensive deal,” he said.
(With inputs from Bloomberg)
Trump, China, trade deal, tariffs, fentanyl trafficking, fentanyl, China US relations, Xi Jinping
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