BY EMMA FARGE AND JOHN REVILL
GENEVA— The United States and China said on Monday they have agreed a deal to slash reciprocal tariffs as Washington and Beijing seek to end a trade war that has disrupted the global economy and set financial markets on edge.
Speaking after talks with Chinese officials in Geneva, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters the two sides had reached a deal for a 90 day pause on measures and that reciprocal tariffs would come down by 115 percent.
US and China ended high-stakes trade talks on a positive note on Sunday, with US officials touting a “deal” to reduce the US trade deficit, while Chinese officials said the sides had reached “important consensus” and agreed to launch another new economic dialogue forum.
Neither side released details after they wrapped up two days of talks in Switzerland. Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said a joint statement would be released in Geneva on Monday. Vice Commerce Minister Li Chenggang said it would contain “good news for the world.”
Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer described “substantial progress” and also said details would be announced on Monday.
Financial markets have been on edge for signs of a thaw in a bitter US-China trade war that has already begun to disrupt supply chains, prompt layoffs and raise wholesale prices.
Greer described the Geneva meetings’ conclusion as “a deal we struck with our Chinese partners” that will help reduce the $1.2 trillion US global goods trade deficit.
“And this was, as the secretary pointed out, a very constructive two days,” Greer said. “It’s important to understand how quickly we were able to come to agreement, which reflects that perhaps the differences were not so large as maybe thought,” Greer said.
The US trade chief called He, Li and Vice Finance Minister Liao Min “tough negotiators.”
Vice Premier He, speaking to reporters at China’s mission to World Trade Organization, described the talks as “candid, in-depth and constructive” on issues of concern to both countries.
“The meeting achieved substantial progress, and reached important consensus,” He said, drawing applause from a large audience of Chinese officials present at the WTO office.
He also met with WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who said she was “pleased with the positive outcome” of the talks and urged the two countries to build on momentum to mitigate trade tensions.
The WTO has ruled against Trump’s past tariffs on Chinese goods, but the cases have been stalled in the WTO’s paralysed appellate body due to the US blocking judge appointments.
Consultation platform
The US and China agreed to establish a new consultation mechanism for trade and economic issues, with relevant details to be finalized as soon as possible, He added.
China and the US have convened numerous consultation bodies to try to resolve trade and economic differences in recent decades, including the Economic Working Group that former president Joe Biden’s Treasury secretary, Janet Yellen, established with Vice Premier He in 2023.
These dialogues have provided forums for airing bilateral grievances, but have done little to advance Washington’s longstanding goal to shift China’s state dominated, export-driven economic model toward one driven by consumer spending.
First meeting
The meeting was the first face-to-face interaction between senior US and Chinese economic officials since Trump took office and launched a global tariff blitz, declaring a national emergency over the US fentanyl crisis and imposing a 20 percent tariff on Chinese goods in February.
Trump followed with a 34 percent “reciprocal” duty on Chinese imports in April, and subsequent rounds pushed the rates into triple digits, bringing nearly $600 billion in two-way trade to a standstill.
