U.S., China Reach Deal on Rare Earths and Tariff Pause for Trump–Xi to Sign

Top US and Chinese economic officials reached a framework trade deal that would pause steeper American tariffs and Chinese export controls on rare earths while resuming US soybean sales to China, according to Reuters correspondents Xinghui Kok, Mei Mei Chu, Yukun Zhang, and John Mair.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. (Photo: The White House Facebook)

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the talks, held on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, eliminated the threat of 100% tariffs on Chinese imports that were set to take effect on November 1.

Bessent added that China is expected to delay implementation of its rare earth minerals and magnets licensing regime by a year while the policy is reviewed.

Chinese officials were more reserved, offering no details about the outcome of the discussions.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, to finalize and sign the deal.

China’s Vice Minister Li Chenggang said only that the two sides had reached a “preliminary consensus” and would proceed through their respective internal approval processes.