Trade War: Towards De-escalation? China and the United States Announce Negotiations

At the same time, China's central bank announced a series of measures to support the country's economy, which is threatened by the trade war with Washington and sluggish domestic consumption.

China "will not sacrifice its principled position" and "will uphold justice" during this meeting between its Vice Premier He Lifeng, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce warned on Wednesday.

"This is not sustainable, especially on the Chinese side. 145% and 125% are the equivalent of an embargo."

"If the United States wants to resolve the issue through negotiation, it must face the serious negative impact of unilateral tariffs on itself and the world," he added in a statement. "If the United States talks one way and acts another, or […] if it tries to continue to coerce and blackmail China under the guise of talks, China will never agree."

"I look forward to productive discussions aimed at rebalancing the international economic system to better serve U.S. interests," Bessent said in a statement.

The two sides will meet Saturday and Sunday to lay the groundwork for future negotiations, he said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday. "I expect we'll be talking about de-escalation, not a big trade deal," he said. "We need de-escalation before we can move forward."

In an effort to support an economy weighed down by sluggish consumption and the trade war with the United States, Beijing also announced on Wednesday the reduction of a key interest rate and the amount of bank reserve requirements to facilitate credit.

Since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, his administration has imposed new tariffs totaling 145% on goods from China, along with sector-specific measures . Beijing retaliated by imposing 125% tariffs on US imports to China, along with more targeted measures.

These levels are considered unsustainable by most economists, to the point of raising the risk of recession over the United States and China, and probably beyond, which would be accompanied by a surge in prices.

"This is not sustainable, […] especially on the Chinese side," said the US Treasury Secretary. "145% and 125% is the equivalent of an embargo."