U.S. and Chinese officials met in Paris on Monday, March 16th. The negotiations have been led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, to finalize trade and agriculture proposals that could set the stage for a possible summit between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping later this month.
The talks focused on expanding Chinese purchases of U.S. farm goods, including soybeans, and creating new mechanisms to manage trade frictions. Reuters, citing sources familiar with the negotiations, said officials also discussed a possible “Board of Trade” and “Board of Investment” to address sector-specific issues.
The talks also addressed strategic supply chains. Reuters reported that U.S. officials raised access to Chinese critical minerals, including aerospace-grade yttrium, while urging Beijing to buy more Boeing aircraft and U.S. energy exports.
Still, broader geopolitical tensions threaten to overshadow the trade track. Trump said in an interview with the Financial Times, that he may delay the China trip unless Beijing helps efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz after conflict-related disruption sent fresh shockwaves through energy markets.
China has meanwhile kept a harder public line on U.S. trade pressure. In a statement carried by Xinhua News Agency, China’s commerce ministry said it had lodged representations with Washington over a new U.S. forced-labor-related trade probe and urged the United States to “correct its wrongdoings” and resolve disputes through dialogue and consultation. AP also reported that Beijing described the new U.S. investigation as damaging to global supply-chain stability.
The Paris talks appeared aimed more at stabilizing ties than achieving an immediate breakthrough. That suggests both sides are trying to preserve momentum in the relationship even as trade disputes and the Iran-linked energy crisis add new uncertainty.
Author: Mariam Simsive
