A new round of trade negotiations between the United States and China is scheduled to take place in London on Monday, aiming to ease ongoing tensions between the world’s two largest economies.
The senior US delegation will be led by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who will meet Chinese officials including Vice Premier He Lifeng. Key issues expected to dominate discussions include Chinese exports of rare earth metals—essential for modern technologies—and Beijing’s access to critical US goods such as semiconductors.
Last month, Washington and Beijing agreed to a temporary truce on trade tariffs, but both sides have since accused each other of breaching the deal. This upcoming meeting follows a recent phone call between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which Trump described as a “very good talk” and said “resulted in a very positive conclusion for both countries.”
Despite tariff reductions agreed in Geneva last month, unresolved disputes remain over rare earth metals, magnets, and restrictions on technology exports tied to artificial intelligence and semiconductors.
Alongside Lutnick, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will join the talks with Chinese officials.
The trade war, sparked by US-imposed tariffs earlier this year, saw tit-for-tat increases peak at 145%. May’s talks in Switzerland led to a truce that Trump called a “total reset,” reducing US tariffs on Chinese goods to 30% and Chinese tariffs on US goods to 10%, with a 90-day deadline to reach a broader deal.
However, both nations accuse each other of failing to meet non-tariff commitments. Greer said China has not eased restrictions on rare earth magnet exports, while Beijing complains about US bans on chip design software sales, warnings against Huawei, and visa cancellations for Chinese students.
