Trump delays China trip
President Trump pushed his planned visit to China back by “five or six weeks,” saying the U.S. must focus on the Iran war — the move injects fresh uncertainty into a relationship already strained by trade and tech disputes. At the same time officials are discussing a new US–China “Board of Trade” to manage which goods and services can cross the divide, and Beijing has rolled out a revised 2026 Foreign Trade Law that favors services and industrial upgrading — pragmatic steps to stabilise ties while summitry is paused. ( ) ( )
The summit had been scheduled for March 31–April 2 in Beijing, a dateslot the White House publicly confirmed as the itinerary planned for bilateral talks. (nbcnews.com) Trade teams met in Paris on March 15–16 with U.S. negotiators led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Chinese counterparts led by Vice Premier He Lifeng and chief negotiator Li Chenggang to map out specific deliverables. (bloomberg.com) Delegates in Paris scheduled technical sessions on a proposed U.S.–China “Board of Trade” and a “Board of Investment,” with officials saying the Board of Trade was the more developed idea aimed at expanding commerce in non‑sensitive sectors. (semafor.com) Beijing’s revised Foreign Trade Law, which took effect March 1, 2026, expands the statute from the previous text and explicitly adds countermeasure powers, stronger IP‑protection language and provisions tying trade policy to industrial upgrading and services-sector opening. (china-briefing.com) As part of the broader trade truce, China has already purchased roughly 12 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans and U.S. officials say Beijing committed to about 25 million metric tons annually for coming years, numbers that underwrite near‑term agricultural demand. (bloomberg.com) U.S. and Chinese officials described the Paris sessions as “remarkably stable” and “very good,” with negotiators signaling that the talks could produce targeted agricultural, critical‑minerals and managed‑trade items for leaders to consider. (whtc.com)
