U.S., China trade talks set for weekend amid ongoing tensions
Global News
News of the planned Geneva meeting sent U.S. equity index futures higher. Stock markets in China and Hong Kong followed suit during Asian trading on Wednesday.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and chief trade negotiator Jamieson Greer will meet China’s economic tsar He Lifeng in Switzerland this weekend for talks that could be the first step toward resolving a trade war disrupting the global economy.
News of the planned Geneva meeting, first announced by Washington late Tuesday, sent U.S. equity index futures higher. Stock markets in China and Hong Kong followed suit during Asian trading on Wednesday.
The talks come after weeks of escalating tensions that have seen duties on goods imports between the world’s two largest economies soar well beyond 100 per cent, amounting to what Bessent on Tuesday described as the equivalent of a trade embargo.
The impasse, alongside U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision last month to slap sweeping duties on dozens of other countries, has upended supply chains, roiled financial markets and stoked fears of a sharp downturn in global growth.
The negotiating teams convening in Switzerland, known for its neutrality, are expected to discuss reductions to the broader tariffs, two sources familiar with the planning said. The talks should also cover duties on specific products, export controls and Trump’s decision to end de minimis exemptions on low-value imports, one of the sources added.
China’s State Council did not immediately reply to a faxed request for comment.
“My sense is this will be about de-escalation,” Bessent told Fox News after the announcement. “We’ve got to de-escalate before we can move forward.”
A Chinese commerce ministry spokesperson later confirmed that China had agreed to meet the U.S. envoys.
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