U.S. levies on Chinese goods will drop from at least 145% to 30% for an initial period of 90 days, while Chinese levies are set to fall from at least 125% to 10% on American goods.
The meetings between top U.S. and Chinese officials in Geneva represent the first potential efforts to end a trade war that has frazzled financial markets.
Chinese consumers have less and less confidence to splurge, which spells trouble for government efforts to jump-start consumer spending to offset deflation and mitigate the trade war with the U.S.
Trade negotiators from the U.S. and China are starting talks this weekend in Switzerland. These are the first high-level trade talks between the two countries since President Trump returned to the White House.
The superpowers have been locked in a geopolitical blinking contest, waiting for the other side to reach out. The talks in Switzerland are the first concrete sign of a potential thaw in the deadlock.
Exporters, importers and recent government statistics all suggest that trade in both directions is slowing sharply as a result of the tariffs. Neither side appears willing to be seen giving ground.
The Senate has confirmed former Sen. David Perdue as ambassador to China, just as the U.S. and China are locked in a tariff showdown that threatens to redefine diplomatic relations between the world's two largest economies. Perdue is a former business executive who served one term as a Republican U.S. senator from Georgia.
The four were part of a group known as the "Hong Kong 47," and were rounded up for taking part in an unofficial primary poll in 2020 that drew more than 600,000 people.
NPR reported that the company would be allowed to keep selling chips used for artificial intelligence tools to China. After NPR's reporting, the Trump administration reversed course.
Growth was driven partly by strong industrial activity and exports, before President Trump's punishing tariffs. Experts say these levies will hurt China's growth this year.
Hong Kong is caught in the middle of the trade disputes between the U.S. and China despite being a free port. The former British colony has trade and customs policies different from mainland China's.
As the country faces slowing economic growth and a trade war with the U.S., China has taken pains to reassure entrepreneurs by telling them they can start businesses, create jobs and benefit society.
