New York [US], November 8: Top US and Chinese officials held "frank" talks on Friday about their countries' strained trade relationship, ahead of an Asia-Pacific summit in China later this month where their leaders are due to meet.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer held a call with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng to discuss the economic and trade commitments of the past year, both sides said.
The US side stressed "the importance of China fully and immediately implementing its commitments" and raised "concerns about recent Chinese actions", according to a Treasury Department statement. Bessent "underscored that continued progress depends on concrete results" and said the United States would closely assess China's implementation of the arrangement.
He expressed "serious concerns over recent economic and trade restrictive measures imposed by the United States", according to a state media report shared by China's commerce ministry on Saturday. The report did not specify the measures but described the talks as "frank, in-depth and constructive". Both sides agreed to "properly manage differences" and promote a "stable" trade relationship, it said.
The US statement referred to commitments China made in October 2025, when Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping met in Busan, South Korea, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
China is hosting this year's APEC gathering in Shenzhen on Nov 18-19. The summit could also bring a three-way meeting between Trump, Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Beijing's foreign ministry said this week it was in contact with Washington and Moscow about the possibility.
The Busan agreement eased tensions after the two powers traded tariff hikes in early 2025. It required China to buy US soybeans through 2028, suspend new export controls on rare earths and issue general licenses for exports of the materials. The deal initially covered one year, but the two sides extended the truce to Jan 10, 2027.
Source: Qatar Tribune