Trump mulls $30B tariff cuts to secure trade wins in Beijing talks

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping opened talks in Beijing on May 13 with trade, export controls, Taiwan arms sales and Iran on the agenda, according to the story context provided by the user. The trade piece under discussion centers on possible tariff cuts covering about $30 billion of imports and a managed channel for non-sensitive goods. Those talks come one year after Washington and Beijing agreed in Geneva to roll back a large share of the tariff increases imposed during their 2025 escalation. The current discussions would test whether that earlier framework can be expanded without reopening the broader disputes that still divide the two governments. ### What is the concrete trade offer being weighed in Beijing? A roughly $30 billion package of tariff cuts is the clearest figure attached to the Beijing talks in the material provided by the user. The proposal is paired with a managed mechanism for non-sensitive goods, aimed at restoring some bilateral trade flows while keeping tighter controls on strategic sectors. The White House’s May 12, 2025 joint statement with China shows the structure U.S. and Chinese officials have already used once: tariff relief tied to a continuing negotiation channel. That statement said both sides would establish “a mechanism to continue discussions about economic and trade relations” after taking agreed tariff actions. ### What did the United States and China already agree to in 2025? On May 12, 2025, Washington and Beijing said they would each lower tariffs by 115% while retaining an additional 10% tariff, according to a White House fact sheet and the joint statement released the same day. The U.S. side also said it would keep in place duties imposed before April 2, 2025, including Section 301, Section 232 and fentanyl-related tariffs. (whitehouse.gov) The White House said those actions were to be taken by May 14, 2025. China, under the same arrangement, agreed to suspend or remove non-tariff countermeasures taken since April 2, 2025, while both sides kept a 10% rate during the initial 90-day pause. ### Why does the old Geneva deal matter to the new Beijing talks? (whitehouse.gov) The May 2025 Geneva statement matters because it created the negotiating mechanism the current talks appear to be using. That document named Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng as Beijing’s representative and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer as the U.S. representatives. It also said the talks could rotate between China, the United States or a third country. (whitehouse.gov) Scott Bessent said in Geneva in May 2025 that both sides had agreed to a 90-day pause and had “moved their tariffs down 115%,” according to a White House release summarizing his remarks. Jamieson Greer said at the same event that the two sides had also agreed to work constructively on fentanyl. ### How much of the tariff wall would still remain even if Beijing gets a deal? (whitehouse.gov) A 10% U.S. tariff baseline on Chinese goods remained after the 2025 Geneva arrangement, according to the White House fact sheet. The same fact sheet said earlier U.S. measures stayed in place, including Section 301 and Section 232 duties and tariffs linked to the fentanyl emergency. (whitehouse.gov) That means any new relief discussed in Beijing would sit on top of an existing stack of trade restrictions rather than replace it wholesale. The managed-goods idea described in the user’s source material would therefore operate inside a system where strategic products remain subject to tighter controls and where export-control disputes are still active. ### Which officials are likely to handle the follow-through after Trump and Xi meet? (whitehouse.gov) He Lifeng, Scott Bessent and Jamieson Greer are the named officials in the standing U.S.-China trade mechanism set out in the May 12, 2025 joint statement. That mechanism also allows for working-level consultations on relevant economic and trade issues. Any next step after the Beijing leaders’ meeting is likely to run through that channel unless the two presidents announce a new structure. The White House documents from May 2025 provide the clearest verified framework now in place, and they identify the officials expected to carry the talks forward. (whitehouse.gov)