China announced this Sunday that it had reached a “preliminary agreement” with the United States of America in trade negotiations, after two days of talks in the Malaysian capital.
The announcement was made by China’s international trade representative, Li Chenggang, although he did not clarify the terms of the “preliminary agreement”.
Li stated that the dialogue between the two sides covered “numerous topics”, giving as examples export controls (which Beijing applies to rare earths), the possible extension of the reciprocal suspension of customs tariffs and anti-drug cooperation against fentanyl.
The United States and China also discussed expanding bilateral trade, as well as US port fees against Chinese vessels.
Trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing are taking place in a climate of tension, after, in mid-October, China imposed new restrictions on trade in rare earths, in the production and export of which it has a virtual monopoly.
In response, the President of the United States threatened to increase tariffs on Chinese products to 100% from November 1st.