US Open to Extending China Trade Truce or Pursuing Bigger Deal, Bessent Says

The United States is willing to either extend its trade truce with China or work toward a broader agreement, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday, shortly after wrapping up talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Washington.

Speaking to reporters, Bessent said the Chinese side had raised the possibility of a larger deal during discussions on Sunday. He noted that the two leaders could meet as many as four times this year, with the upcoming White House summit being the second such encounter, following a gathering in Shenzhen and with a further meeting expected in Miami. Washington, he said, is comfortable with either path and will act in the interest of the American people.

The meeting, held at World Bank headquarters, was described by Bessent as an effort to resolve remaining issues before President Donald Trump hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House on Thursday. He said the administration is seeking strategic stability grounded in reciprocity and fairness.

His post-meeting comments marked the clearest indication yet that an extension of the trade truce agreed last year in Busan, South Korea, could feature in the leaders' discussions. That truce is due to expire on November 10, and its fate was left unresolved after Sunday's talks.

The Busan arrangement sharply reduced bilateral tariff rates that had climbed into triple digits during tit-for-tat retaliation over Trump's tariff increases last year. Under the deal, China also agreed to resume supplies of rare earth magnets and other critical minerals that it had heavily restricted.

Bessent, He and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met in New York on Sunday to prepare possible trade and artificial intelligence agreements for the two leaders. Bessent called those talks successful and said the two sides had agreed to set up a communications hotline for notifying each other about AI safety incidents. China's response to the hotline proposal remained unclear, with state media acknowledging only that AI had been discussed.

Analysts see limited prospects for AI cooperation, citing a lack of mutual trust on the technology and little apparent interest on either side in slowing development. Trump has said he will not stifle AI growth and intends to preserve the US lead over China in what he calls super intelligence.

Greer said on Monday that discussions on extending the truce would continue, adding that both sides appeared to want an extension. He also said Washington must maintain pressure on Beijing to ensure compliance with its critical minerals commitments. US officials said last week that Chinese deliveries of rare earths had fallen short of expectations.

Sunday's talks also covered topics previously raised by Trump and Xi at a May meeting in Beijing, including reducing mutual tariffs on certain non-strategic goods and Chinese purchases of Boeing aircraft and agricultural products. Greer said the two sides agreed to operationalize a May process, known as the Board of Trade, for identifying potential tariff cuts on non-strategic goods. Chinese exports such as consumer goods and low-tech items could be covered, he said, while US energy, agricultural goods and medical devices could receive similar treatment.