Negotiators seek 90-day extension to tariff truce
Top economic officials from the United States and China met in Stockholm on Monday for over five hours in a renewed attempt to stabilize their trade relationship. The session, hosted at the Swedish prime minister’s office, brought together U.S. Treasury Chief Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng. The talks aim to extend a fragile truce by another 90 days as the August 12 deadline for a lasting agreement approaches.
Without an extension, a collapse in talks could reactivate punitive tariffs that would effectively cripple bilateral trade. Both sides previously reached preliminary deals in May and June that paused escalating tariffs and reopened some flows of rare earth minerals.
Tariffs, tech, and minerals dominate the agenda
Despite cautious optimism, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer indicated no breakthrough was expected. “This is about implementation, monitoring critical minerals, and laying the foundation for balanced trade,” he said. Behind closed doors, negotiators are working to stabilize exports, including sensitive technologies and critical inputs like Nvidia’s AI chips and rare earths essential to the defense and automotive sectors.
Insiders say the talks are not yet addressing core disputes, such as China’s state-backed manufacturing strategy and U.S. tech export restrictions. These deeper issues remain unresolved, with previous rounds in Geneva and London focused mostly on de-escalation.
Geopolitical tensions cast a long shadow
U.S. legislative efforts are threatening to complicate the fragile negotiations. Lawmakers in Washington are preparing new sanctions over China’s human rights record and its approach to Taiwan. Meanwhile, Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te is expected to delay a proposed trip to the U.S. to avoid aggravating tensions with Beijing during this sensitive period.
Analysts warn that even a temporary extension of the truce may not insulate talks from political risks. “These negotiations are fundamentally more complex than those with other Asian nations,” said Scott Kennedy from CSIS. “There’s a strategic rivalry layered on top of economic disagreements.”
October summit may hinge on Stockholm progress
The White House is reportedly pushing to organize a meeting between President Trump and China’s Xi Jinping in the fall. A successful extension of the tariff truce could help pave the way for that encounter. Reports also suggest that the U.S. has paused further export controls to maintain goodwill and avoid derailing the negotiations.
China’s dominance in rare earths, essential for everything from military equipment to renewable tech, continues to give it leverage in the talks. The Biden and Trump administrations alike have long called on Beijing to shift its growth model toward domestic consumption, but progress remains limited.
