US, China to Hold Trade Talks in Switzerland
China and the United States have announced plans to meet next weekend in Switzerland to set the stage for trade negotiations. This marks the first meeting of its kind since former President Donald Trump slapped hefty tariffs on Chinese goods, prompting a response from Beijing.
At the same time, the People’s Bank of China has rolled out a series of measures aimed at boosting the nation’s economy, which is currently under threat from the ongoing trade war with Washington and sluggish domestic consumption.
China has vowed to “safeguard international fairness and justice” in upcoming talks with the United States in Switzerland, the first meeting between the two countries to discuss trade war that has roiled the global economy since US president Donald Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs last month.
“If the US wants to resolve the issue through negotiation, it must face the serious negative impact of unilateral tariff measures on itself and the world,” China’s commerce ministry said,” the ministry asserted in a statement.
“If the US tries to use talks as a pretext to continue its coercion and extortion, China will not accept it and will not sacrifice its principled stance or international fairness and justice to reach any agreement.”
Bessent said on Tuesday the talks would be focused on de-escalating the trade war, rather than negotiating any deal.
“We will agree what we’re going to talk about. My sense is that this will be about de-escalation, not about the big trade deal,” Bessent told Fox news. “This isn’t sustainable, ” he said.
