KUALA LUMPUR — Top Chinese and United States (US) economic officials agreed on the framework for a trade agreement on Sunday as US President Donald Trump said he was confident of hashing out a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping when they meet in the coming days.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and top trade negotiator Li Chenggang on the sidelines of the 47th Asean Summit and Related Summits at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre for a fifth round of in-person discussions since May.
"I think we have a very successful framework for the leaders to discuss on Thursday," Bessent told the press.
He told NBC's 'Meet the Press' that he anticipated the agreement would defer China's expanded export controls on rare earth minerals and magnets and avoid a new 100 per cent US tariff on Chinese goods threatened by Trump.
Trump and Xi would discuss soybean and agricultural purchases from American farmers, more balanced trade, and resolving the US fentanyl crisis, which had prompted the 20 per cent US tariffs on Chinese goods.
China's Li said both sides had reached a "preliminary consensus" and will next go through their respective internal approval processes.
"The US. position has been tough. We have experienced very intense consultations and engaged in constructive exchanges in exploring solutions and arrangements to address these concerns," he said.
Trump arrived in Malaysia today for the summit, his first stop in a five-day Asia tour that is expected to culminate in a face-to-face with Xi in South Korea on October 30.
After the talks, he struck an optimistic tone, saying: "I think we are going to have a deal with China".
Trade truce
Both sides are looking to avert an escalation of their trade war after Trump threatened new 100 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods and other trade curbs starting on November 1, in retaliation for China's expanded export controls on rare earth magnets and minerals.
Beijing and Washington rolled back most of their triple-digit tariffs on each other's goods under a trade truce, which is due to expire on November 10.
The US and Chinese officials said they discussed trade expansion, an extension of the truce, fentanyl, US port entrance fees, rare earths, TikTok, and more.
Li described the discussions as "candid", while Bessent said they were "very substantial negotiations".
Bessent noted that the truce could be extended, pending the President's decision, marking a second extension since it was first signed in May.
Talking points
While the White House has officially announced the highly anticipated Trump-Xi talks, Beijing has yet to confirm that the two leaders will meet.
On the sidelines of the summit, Trump hinted at possible meetings with Xi in China and the US.
"We have agreed to meet. We are going to meet them later in China, and we are going to meet in the US, in either Washington or at Mar-a-Lago (in Florida),” he said.
Among Trump's talking points with Xi are Chinese purchases of US soybeans, concerns around democratically-governed Taiwan, which Beijing views as its own territory, and the release of jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai.
The detention of the founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily has become the most high-profile example of China's crackdown on rights in Hong Kong.
Trump also said that he would seek China's help in Washington's dealings with Russia, as Moscow's war in Ukraine grinds on.
Fragile truce
Tensions between the world's two largest economies flared in the past few weeks as a delicate trade truce, reached after a first round of trade talks in Geneva in May and extended in August, failed to prevent the two sides from hitting each other with more sanctions, export curbs, and threats of stronger retaliatory measures.
The latest round of talks has likely centred on China's expanded controls over rare-earth exports, which have caused a global shortage.
That has prompted the Trump administration to consider a block on software-powered exports to China, from laptops to jet engines, according to a Reuters report.
