STOCKHOLM: US and Chinese economic officials will hold fresh talks in Stockholm on Monday to negotiate an extension of their tariff truce, aiming to prevent a sharp escalation in trade barriers and pave the way for a potential meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping later this year.
The discussions follow a temporary pause in trade hostilities after May and June agreements eased tensions, but an August 12 deadline looms for a more permanent deal.
Without progress, US tariffs on Chinese goods could revert to triple-digit levels, disrupting global supply chains.
“We’re very close to a deal with China. We really sort of made a deal with China, but we’ll see how that goes,“ Trump told reporters on Sunday, hinting at cautious optimism.
The Stockholm talks come shortly after the US and EU struck a major trade deal, reducing tariffs on European goods and securing large-scale US energy purchases.
However, analysts expect no immediate breakthrough in US-China negotiations, predicting instead a 90-day extension of the current truce.
Previous discussions in Geneva and London focused on lowering retaliatory tariffs and restoring trade in critical goods like rare earth minerals and AI chips.
Yet, deeper economic disputes—such as US concerns over China’s export-driven model and Beijing’s objections to US tech export controls—remain unresolved.
“Geneva and London were really just about trying to get the relationship back on track so that they could, at some point, actually negotiate about the issues which animate the disagreement between the countries in the first place,“ said Scott Kennedy of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
A potential Trump-Xi meeting in late October could provide momentum for further concessions.
China may push for reduced US tariffs and eased tech restrictions, while the US seeks increased Chinese purchases of American goods to narrow the trade deficit, which hit $295.5 billion in 2024. - Reuters
