China and the US concluded a two-day series of trade negotiations on Tuesday without substantial outcome.
Although Chinese trade representative Li Chenggang said “the two sides will continue to push for the continued extension” of a pause on tariffs between the two countries, no agreement was announced.
China and the US agreed in May to enact a 90-day suspension on the punishing tariffs imposed by Washington in April and Beijing’s subsequent retaliatory measures. The suspension is set to end on 12 August, with US trade representative Jamieson Greer indicating that US President Donald Trump “can make a final call” on whether the pause continues.
[See more: A new round of China-US trade talks gets underway in Stockholm]
Also on the table were Washington’s aggressive policies on restricting semiconductor exports to China, as well China’s controls of exports of rare earth minerals and its use of Russian oil.
According to Li, both sides engaged in “candid exchanges over each other’s trade and economic concerns.” The talks were “very constructive,” said US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Although Trump recently claimed that the US has “a good relationship with China,” relations between the two powers have remained tense in the face of Washington’s aggressive efforts to contain China’s economic, technological and geopolitical rise.
