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Investing.com-- U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Monday that he expects to see progress in U.S.-China trade talks in the coming weeks, stating that President Donald Trump’s 145% tariffs on the country were not sustainable.
But Bessent did not comment on whether active trade talks with China were happening.
“I think we could see substantial progress in the coming weeks… 145%, 125% tariff levels are the equivalent of an embargo,” Bessent said in an interview with CNBC.
He also noted that the U.S. had the high ground in the trade conflict, stating that the U.S. was the “deficit country” and that China, the “surplus country,” had more to lose.
When questioned over whether negotiations were happening, Bessent said “we’ll see over the coming weeks, we’ll see what President Trump wants to accept.”
Bessent’s comments come amid heightened uncertainty over whether U.S.-China trade talks are taking place, after the two countries became embroiled in a bitter trade war in April. Trump slapped China with 145% tariffs, while China retaliated with 125% tariffs.
But while Trump claimed that Chinese trade talks were taking place, China denied that any negotiations had happened. Trump also signaled little intent to hold immediate talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
China did signal some openness to trade talks last week, claiming that U.S. officials had reached out with the intent to negotiate. But Beijing said it will not engage in talks until the U.S. brings down its steep tariffs on the country.
Trump has signaled that he is open to lowering tariffs on China, but will not do so until Beijing comes to the negotiation .
Trump claimed on Monday that China wanted to make a deal “very badly,” although he did not clarify whether Beijing had reached out.