Trade negotiations between the United States and China have stalled, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday, less than three weeks after the two countries agreed to a temporary truce in their ongoing trade war.
A deal was reached earlier this month, following talks in Switzerland, which saw both nations agree to reduce tariffs on each other’s goods, suspending some duties for 90 days from 14 May.
The United States lowered tariffs on Chinese imports from 145% to 30%, while China cut its retaliatory tariffs on US goods from 125% to 10%.
Speaking to Fox News, Bessent described the stalled talks as “a bit stalled” but stressed that discussions were ongoing and expected to resume in the coming weeks.
He indicated that the involvement of both US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping might be necessary to break the deadlock.
There is no better negotiator than @POTUS.
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) May 29, 2025
President Trump is carrying out the long-overdue work of rebalancing the global economy to the benefit of the American people.
I am confident that the Chinese, and the rest of our trading partners, will come to the table thanks to his… pic.twitter.com/wNgoLJFpvu
“I believe that we will be having more talks with China in the next few weeks and I believe we may at some point have a call between the president and Chinese President Xi Jinping,” Bessent said, adding that the two leaders maintained “a very good relationship.”
The development comes amid legal challenges to Trump’s global tariffs policy.
On Wednesday, the US Court of International Trade ruled that Trump had exceeded his authority by imposing some of the tariffs. A day later a federal appeals court temporarily reinstated the most sweeping of President Donald Trump's tariffs.
However, the White House successfully appealed the decision, temporarily reinstating the duties while the case continues.
Trump criticised the ruling on his social media platform, calling it “horrific” and urging the Supreme Court to reverse the decision “quickly and decisively.”
The tariffs have been a key element of the Trump administration’s strategy to reduce trade deficits, encourage domestic manufacturing, and raise tax revenue by making foreign goods more expensive.
Meanwhile, US trade talks with other countries are expected to continue. Recently, the Trump administration also set a deadline of July 9 to reach a trade deal between the United States and European Union.
Trade experts warn that the ongoing legal uncertainty surrounding the tariffs could weaken US leverage in future trade negotiations.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ