Bessent says next round of U.S.-China trade talks could occur soon
發佈日期: 2025-07-22 21:20
TVB News
U.S. treasury chief Scott Bessent said the U.S. would soon engage in trade negotiations with China.
He said the talks could touch upon topics of China's purchases of Russian and Iranian oil imports as well as the issue of overcapacity in manufacturing sectors.
U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to hit some of America's largest trading partners with tariffs as high as 50 percent.
The new levies, scheduled to kick in on August 1st, would affect countries such as Canada, Mexico and Japan, as well as the European Union, unless trade deals are reached with Washington beforehand.
Speaking in a CNBC interview on Monday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington is in no rush because it is more concerned with the quality of the agreements rather than their timing.
He said whether the tariff deadline could be extended for nations that engaged in productive negotiations is contingent upon the decision of President Trump.
On China, the treasury chief suggested the next round of bilateral trade talks could take place "in the very near future," as their "trade is in a good place." Bessent said the two sides could also discuss "the elephant in the room," pointing to China's status as the world's manufacturing powerhouse in his push for Beijing's "great rebalancing."
China's purchases of sanctioned Russian and Iranian oil are also likely to be covered in the talks.
Bessent reiterated the punishing "secondary tariffs" of up to 100 percent, which the Trump administration says would be levied on any country that trades with Moscow.
Bessent added, if the secondary sanctions are implemented, Europe will be urged to follow suit.
In Beijing, officials have repeatedly stressed opposition against any illegal unilateral sanctions or long-arm jurisdiction. They denounced Trump's use of "coercion and extortion" to pressure China into submission and said the tactics would not work.
Meanwhile, sources say there were discussions on both sides of the Pacific on a potential meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year.
The plan, although not yet finalised, could include Trump's stopover at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea or talks on the sidelines of the event.
China has also sought the attendance of international guests, including presidents of U.S. and Russia, for the "Victory Day" military parade this September commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two.
Vladimir Putin has already confirmed his presence.
Earlier, The Times reported that Xi seeks to convene a trilateral summit between him, Trump and Putin.
