No US-China trade talks underway, but other trade deals close- trade rep. Greer

Published 01/05/2025, 01:46
© Reuters

Investing.com-- There are no official trade talks taking place between the U.S. and China, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, although he noted the U.S. was weeks away from trade deals with other countries. 

Speaking in an interview aired on Wednesday, Greer- when asked about whether there were official trade talks with China, said “not yet,” and that he had spoken to his Chinese counterpart before April 2. This was before President Donald Trump imposed steep reciprocal trade tariffs on China and sparked a renewed trade war between the world’s biggest economies.

Greer’s comments come amid a slew of contrasting signals on whether trade talks between the world’s economies are taking place. Trump had claimed that his administration was negotiating with China, while Beijing had denied any such claims. 

Greer told Fox News that the Trump administration was seeking “targeted” deals with its major trading partners, and was also seeking free trade agreements. 

“We have deals that are close… we’re talking about a matter of weeks and not months to have some initial deals announced,” Greer told Fox News. 

“We’re very focused on a targeted mission here. We want to achieve reciprocal trade, and reduce the trade deficit.” 

Greer said he had talks with a string of countries lined up in the coming days, including Japan, Saudi Arabia, and the Philippines. 

On India, Greer said a deal was not “finish-line close,” but that he did have a standing call with India’s trade minister. 

Several major global economies have been racing to negotiate with the U.S. and avoid Trump’s steep reciprocal tariffs- although his 90-day extension on the measure did provide some temporary relief. 

China, however, has struck a largely hawkish stance against the U.S. over the tariffs, having retaliated with 125% tariffs on American goods. Soft purchasing managers index data released earlier this week showed Chinese businesses were already grappling with the impact of Trump’s tariffs. 

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last week that the U.S. will likely have to deescalate some tariff pressure on China to bring Beijing to the negotiating table. He also flagged a long, drawn-out process to reach a trade deal with China.

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