White House says it has a deal with China while Chinese call it 'consensus'
In a media briefing after a second day of talks with U.S. negotiators on Sunday, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said trade talks with the U.S. “achieved substantial progress and reached important consensus.”
Earlier Sunday, the White House said that it reached a deal without providing any details.
While U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer called it a “deal,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who was in Switzerland for the talks with Greer, said only that "substantial progress" had been made.
President Donald Trump on Friday voiced a willingness to ease tariffs on China, saying on social media it "seems right" to slash levies from 145% to 80%.
Trump last month sharply increased tariffs on China, prompting China to retaliate with 125% tariffs on U.S. goods. The tit-for-tat measures set off a trade war with the third-largest U.S. trade partner, which accounted for nearly $440 billion worth of imports last year.
The tariffs elicited warnings from a slew of companies about the risk of price increases for U.S. shoppers.
China said that it will release a joint statement with the U.S. on Monday regarding the agreement reached on Sunday.
“The two sides agreed on establishing a consultation mechanism for trade and economic issues, identify the lead persons on each side, and will carry on further consultations relating to trade and economic issues of their respective concerns,” the Chinese vice premier said.
He said that China’s stance has been “clear and consistent,” and that it does not want a trade war.
“China doesn't want to fight a trade war because trade wars produce no winners. But if the U.S. insists on forcing this war upon us, China will not be afraid of it, and we'll fight to the end,” He said.
Chinese officials called the meeting “productive” and said that “an important first step [was] taken by the two sides to properly resolve their differences through equal-footed dialogue.”
When asked by a reporter whether the potential deal would help the White House address the U.S. trade deficit, China deferred to Monday’s joint statement.
“China is always pursuing win-win outcomes in its trade and economic negotiations, therefore, any possible deal to be reached will definitely be in the interest- development interest of China’s own [inaud],” trade negotiator Li Chenggang said.
When asked about the atmosphere of meetings, Chinese trade negotiator Li Chenggang characterized them as having “mutual respect” and “sincerity.”
-ABC News' Max Zahn contributed to this report.
