China signals tariff cuts, aircraft buys

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping ended their Beijing summit with the clearest sign in months that the two governments may ease some trade restrictions, but both sides left key details unresolved. China’s commerce ministry said on May 16 that Beijing and Washington had agreed in principle to reduce some tariffs, expand agricultural trade and address non-tariff barriers and market-access disputes. U.S. officials separately said they expected large new Chinese purchases of American farm goods. The commitments, as described by Chinese and U.S. officials, remain preliminary and still require follow-up talks. ### What did China say it agreed to after the summit? China’s commerce ministry said on Saturday that the two sides would promote two-way trade, including agricultural products, through reciprocal tariff reductions and work on non-tariff barriers and market-access issues. The ministry said the understandings were “preliminary” and would be finalized “as soon as possible.” Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister, said on May 15 that the two governments would establish a board of trade and a board of investment. Wang said those mechanisms would address mutual concerns over market access and agricultural products, and Bloomberg reported that working-level teams still had to discuss implementation details. ### How much movement is there on farm trade? (cnbc.com) China’s additional levy on U.S. farm imports still stands at 10% after last year’s rounds of tit-for-tat tariffs, according to Reuters’ reporting from the commerce ministry statement and U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Reuters reported that U.S.-to-China agricultural trade fell 65.7% year over year to $8.4 billion in 2025. (bloomberg.com) Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, said on May 15 that Washington expected China to buy “double-digit billions” of U.S. agricultural goods over the next three years. Greer also referred to the 25 million metric ton annual soybean arrangement reached last October, according to Reuters and Bloomberg summaries of his remarks. (cnbc.com) Beijing also moved on a specific U.S. complaint. China granted five-year registration extensions to 425 U.S. beef plants and approved new five-year registrations for 77 additional U.S. facilities, Reuters reported, citing the commerce ministry. The ministry also said China would address U.S. concerns over beef-facility registrations and poultry exports from some U.S. states. (money.usnews.com) ### Where do aircraft purchases fit in? The New York Times reported that China had also preliminarily agreed to buy American aircraft, engines and parts, though the details remained under negotiation. The report placed aviation alongside agriculture and tariff relief as part of the package discussed around the summit. Neither China’s commerce ministry statement summarized by Reuters nor the public remarks from Wang Yi and Greer provided product-by-product terms for any aircraft deal. (cnbc.com) That leaves the aviation element, as publicly described so far, less defined than the farm measures and the new trade-and-investment bodies. ### Why did the tariff message look inconsistent? (nytimes.com) Donald Trump told reporters on Air Force One on May 15 that tariffs were not discussed with Xi, according to the New York Times. China’s commerce ministry said the next day that the countries had reached a preliminary agreement to reduce some tariffs, a public account that the Times said appeared to contradict Trump’s description. (cnbc.com) Bloomberg also reported on May 15 that Trump said he had not discussed extending the tariff truce with Xi even as China said both sides would set up new boards on trade and investment. That gap underscored how much of the post-summit package still depends on lower-level negotiations and future announcements. ### What else was tied to the trade talks? (nytimes.com) Trump’s trip was also shaped by Taiwan and Iran. The Associated Press reported that Trump described arms sales to Taiwan as a “very good negotiating chip” in dealing with China, raising concern in Taiwan about whether security issues were being linked to broader bargaining with Beijing. The Associated Press also reported that the three-day visit to China was dominated in part by discussions over Taiwan and a new framework for the bilateral relationship. (bloomberg.com) That means the trade package emerged alongside wider talks on security and regional issues, not in isolation. Working-level teams are now expected to negotiate the specifics of tariff cuts, agricultural purchases and any aviation commitments through the new trade and investment boards described by Wang Yi. (apnews.com) Xi also accepted Trump’s invitation for a reciprocal U.S. visit in September, according to reporting on the summit’s follow-up, giving both governments a potential next milestone for announcing firmer terms. (english.gov.cn) (apnews.com)