US President Donald Trump and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping have agreed on a trade truce, where the US will ease tariffs and China will restart imports of US soybeans. In return, Beijing will delay export restrictions on some rare earth metals and intensify efforts to curb illegal fentanyl trafficking.
The short duration of their talks - about 1 hour and 40 minutes - has sparked surprise among observers, with one analyst suggesting that both sides may have limited discussions to topics already settled in advance. The US had initially suggested the talks could last up to four hours.
This agreement is not a trade deal but rather a truce, which analysts describe as a "partial freeze" or "minor rollback" in the ongoing US-China trade war. China agreed to delay export restrictions on five rare earth metals announced this month and seven others announced in April, while also committing to intensify efforts to curb fentanyl trafficking.
The resumption of Chinese purchases of US soybeans will provide both an economic boost and a symbolic win for Trump's administration. However, the lack of concrete details has disappointed traders, with soya bean futures slipping after the summit.
Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that contributed to tens of thousands of overdose deaths last year, remains at the center of US-China tensions on narcotics control. Beijing had previously pushed back on Trump's accusations, but Xi assured him that China is doing its best to meet its obligations on narcotics control.
China also stated it does not seek to challenge or replace any country and instead focuses on "doing its own business well". The two leaders agreed to focus on long-term benefits brought by cooperation rather than falling into a vicious cycle of retaliation.
Despite the apparent agreement, some analysts are skeptical about its significance. Einar Tangen, a senior fellow at the Taihe Institute in Beijing, says that Trump's decision to ease tariffs from 57% to 47% "means nothing" and that there was not as much progress as Donald Trump is trying to hint at.
A visit to China next year by Trump has been confirmed, but details remain scarce. The question of Chinese access to Nvidia's chips remains a major point of US-China tech tension.
The short duration of their talks - about 1 hour and 40 minutes - has sparked surprise among observers, with one analyst suggesting that both sides may have limited discussions to topics already settled in advance. The US had initially suggested the talks could last up to four hours.
This agreement is not a trade deal but rather a truce, which analysts describe as a "partial freeze" or "minor rollback" in the ongoing US-China trade war. China agreed to delay export restrictions on five rare earth metals announced this month and seven others announced in April, while also committing to intensify efforts to curb fentanyl trafficking.
The resumption of Chinese purchases of US soybeans will provide both an economic boost and a symbolic win for Trump's administration. However, the lack of concrete details has disappointed traders, with soya bean futures slipping after the summit.
Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that contributed to tens of thousands of overdose deaths last year, remains at the center of US-China tensions on narcotics control. Beijing had previously pushed back on Trump's accusations, but Xi assured him that China is doing its best to meet its obligations on narcotics control.
China also stated it does not seek to challenge or replace any country and instead focuses on "doing its own business well". The two leaders agreed to focus on long-term benefits brought by cooperation rather than falling into a vicious cycle of retaliation.
Despite the apparent agreement, some analysts are skeptical about its significance. Einar Tangen, a senior fellow at the Taihe Institute in Beijing, says that Trump's decision to ease tariffs from 57% to 47% "means nothing" and that there was not as much progress as Donald Trump is trying to hint at.
A visit to China next year by Trump has been confirmed, but details remain scarce. The question of Chinese access to Nvidia's chips remains a major point of US-China tech tension.
I've seen these trade truces come and go before. It's like taking two steps forward, then one step back. Trump thinks this is a huge win, but let's be real, it's just a temporary reprieve for both sides. The big picture hasn't changed – China's still not letting its guard down, and the US is still trying to keep up with its trade deficit.
. Trump's gotta stop making these grand promises and start delivering some real substance.
. Time to take a step back and rethink our priorities, if you ask me.
... sounds like both sides had the agenda already figured out lol 
... it's more like a partial freeze than actual trade deal 
... and china still dodges on Nvidia chips 
... can't help but feel like trump's trying to milk this for all he can get 
The lack of transparency is kinda suspicious too, especially with the US-China tech tension still simmering...
. it's all just a game of chess, right? one guy moves his piece, other guy responds... and nobody really wins 
. china's gotta do what china wants & us is stuck w/ the tariffs 
. fentanyl's still a big issue tho 
. hope xi means business on that front 
.
. fentanyl trafficking still a big issue, but China says they're doing their best to curb it 
. dont know about the tech tension tho, Nvidia chips and all that 
. think this truce is more like a partial freeze than a full deal 
. Trump is probably celebrating this partial freeze as a major win, but I'm not convinced it's going to last 
. And what about the deeper structural problems that led to this trade war in the first place? I guess we'll have to wait and see how this truce plays out 
. One thing's for sure, though: it's good news for soybean farmers 
!
.
. And what's up with no concrete details? I'm all for transparency, fam! 
. sounds like both sides were just checking boxes on things they already agreed on anyway 
. soya bean futures slipping? who cares, soybeans are just gonna be sold or whatever 
️. and fentanyl trafficking, yeah, china's all about doing its own thing now 
. trump thinks this is a major win but honestly it's just more of the same 
. can't wait for trumps next visit to china, i'm sure that'll be super exciting 
.
I'm still not convinced about this trade truce between the US and China 
. I'm still worried that the real deal is yet to come, and this truce is just a way for both sides to save face 
. I mean, the tariffs were already taking a hit from previous deals, so what's an extra 10% gonna do? 
. Next year's visit to China by Trump is gonna be interesting... will he actually follow through? 
anyway, back to this trade truce thing... I feel like we'll see more of these agreements before anything concrete happens. just my two cents 
this is amazing news!!! i'm so stoked that the US and china were able to come together and make some progress on trade 
can't wait to see what other good things come out of this truce 
fentanyl trafficking is such a serious issue and it's awesome that xi jinping assured trump that china is doing its best to meet its obligations 
lets keep the positivity vibes going 