Trump: "Trade Talks with China to Begin in Early August"

Frequent Conversations with Xi Jinping
Negotiations to Begin in Early August with Lutnick and Others

The Donald Trump administration has announced plans to launch larger-scale trade negotiations with China in August.

On July 8 (local time), President Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, "We have maintained a good relationship with China recently," adding, "China has maintained our trade agreement very fairly."

President Trump further asserted, "China is a big, strong, and powerful country, but we are stronger and have better military equipment."

President Trump also emphasized, "I have had a good relationship with President Xi Jinping, and we speak often."

Previously, the United States and China had engaged in a tariff war, imposing retaliatory tariffs on each other. However, at the first round of trade talks held in Geneva in May, both sides agreed to lower mutual tariff rates and declared a truce. Despite this, both countries continued to impose export control measures, resulting in an unstable truce. At the second round of trade talks held in London, the two sides agreed to partially lift China's export controls on rare earth exports to the United States and the U.S. export controls on exports to China.

Howard Lutnick, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, also stated in an interview with CNBC, "China has promptly approved rare earth magnet exports to the United States as agreed," and assessed, "We are in a pretty good position right now." He added, "China and the United States will begin larger trade talks," and predicted, "Scott Besant, Secretary of the Treasury, Jamison Greer, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), and I will begin these talks in early August."