#TradeWarEases

China and the United States agree to reduce tariffs for 90 days during negotiations.

The agreement reduces tensions in the trade war but hardly contributes to changing the overall direction of the deteriorating relations between Beijing and Washington, according to analysts.

May 12, 2025, at 3:37 AM EDTToday at 3:37 AM EDT

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Sellers await their customers in the Christmas tree shop at the Yiwu International Market in eastern China last month, as the tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump came into effect. Negotiations held in Geneva this weekend aimed to ease tensions in the trade war between the two largest economies in the world. (Ng Han Guan/AP)

China and the United States have agreed to reduce tariffs on goods from each other for 90 days, offering a temporary respite in a trade war that threatens to trigger a global recession and deepen the growing divide between the two largest economies in the world.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stated Monday at a press conference in Geneva that U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods would be reduced from 145% to 30%. China announced that it would reduce its general tariffs from 125% to 10% starting Wednesday.

In a brief joint statement at the conclusion of the weekend discussions, both parties committed to taking these measures as discussions continued in a "spirit of mutual openness, ongoing communication, cooperation, and mutual respect."