Bessent and Greer describe US-China talks as productive; trade body goes live

The atmosphere was described as positive, but the only concrete outcomes were procedural and no specifics on tariff levels or purchasing commitments were disclosed. This means financial markets are unlikely to view the talks as a major shift. If energy and farm products eventually appear on the final Board of Trade list, US exporters in those sectors would be the obvious sentiment winners — though that depends on Chinese demand and any tariff terms that remain unspecified. The focus on consumer goods and lower-tech products suggests any tariff relief will target non-strategic items, leaving sensitive categories such as semiconductors and rare earths outside the mechanism for now. Since the reported comments did not address the November 10 truce expiry, the summit still carries headline risk.

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Washington and Beijing ended their New York meetings with a functional Board of Trade, an agreement for a second round of AI consultations, and a follow-up session scheduled for Monday, but there was no mention of the November 10 truce expiration.

Summary:

• US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described his Sunday meeting with Chinese officials on trade and AI in New York as a very successful engagement. The two sides agreed to reconvene for an AI dialogue, and the US put forward a proposal for a bilateral notification system.
• US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer confirmed the Board of Trade has been made operational, with teams from both countries continuing their work on it.
• Greer indicated that Chinese participation is likely to cover consumer goods and low-tech items, while US exports could include energy products, agricultural goods, and possibly medical devices.
• China's top trade negotiator, Li, said the talks were not bad and that the working group will continue on Monday. He also said AI was discussed alongside trade and investment.
• The meetings, which included Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, took place ahead of a summit this week between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.
• The comments reported so far did not address the US-China trade truce, which expires on November 10, or US concerns about Chinese flows of critical minerals.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reported that his talks with Chinese officials on trade and AI in New York on Sunday were a very successful engagement, coming ahead of a summit this week between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Bessent said the two sides committed to a follow-up AI dialogue, and the US suggested a notification mechanism to improve communication between the countries. The meetings, also attended by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, were hosted at JPMorgan Chase's Manhattan headquarters.

Greer concentrated on the Board of Trade, the forum the two countries agreed in May to establish for negotiating tariff reductions on non-strategic goods. He stated that it has been made operational, with US and Chinese teams actively working on it. On the Chinese side, he said consumer goods and low-tech items are likely to be covered. On the US side, he said potential goods could include energy products, farm goods, and possibly medical devices.

China's top trade negotiator, Li, stated that the discussions went not bad and that the working group will continue its work on Monday. He confirmed the AI dialogue was part of the agenda alongside trade and investment.

The reported remarks did not cover two issues flagged ahead of the meeting: the US-China trade truce, which expires on November 10, and US dissatisfaction with Chinese flows of rare-earth magnets and critical minerals. A senior US official on Friday said China's mineral performance has been below expectations. Analysts had predicted that the most likely result would be a series of small steps showing both sides were aiming to avoid escalation rather than achieve a breakthrough, and the reported tone matches that description.

The talks continue a pattern of the past 16 months in which Bessent, Greer and He have met before leader-level summits, including the November 2025 Busan truce that capped US tariffs on Chinese goods at roughly 20%. Many current issues date back to the leaders' May meeting in Beijing, including Chinese pledges to buy around $17 billion a year of US farm goods and more than 200 Boeing aircraft.

The mention of agricultural goods as a potential US Board of Trade item would align with those farm purchase pledges, and energy products represent a new category worth monitoring. The key points to watch now are whether Monday's working-group talks produce a specific list of products and tariff terms, whether the AI dialogue gets a fixed schedule, and whether the truce expiry and critical minerals are addressed before the summit.

Xi is scheduled to visit Washington on Thursday, September 24, as a state guest hosted by Trump. It will be the second summit of 2026 for the two leaders, following their Beijing meeting in May.