Chinese and US officials agree on framework of trade deal

Rare earth metals, extension of truces on tariffs among topics in negotiations, says US official

- Keith Bradsher and Zunaira Saieed

Chinese and American trade negotiators said on Oct 26 that they had agreed to a framework of a deal on tariffs and other issues before an expected meeting of the countries' top leaders this week.

“We are moving forward to the final details of the type of agreement that the leaders can review and decide if they want to conclude together,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said to reporters in Kuala Lumpur.

He also said the two sides had also discussed another extension in a series of truces on tariffs they have engaged in in 2025.

China’s top trade negotiator, Mr Li Chenggang, described the talks between the US and China as “candid and in-depth discussions” on the trade deal, adding that the two sides had reached a “preliminary consensus”.

The negotiators were in Kuala Lumpur for an Asean meeting, where US President Donald Trump began a nearly week-long trip to Asia. The variety of issues discussed in Kuala Lumpur included bilateral trade, export controls, reciprocal tariff extensions, fentanyl-related tariffs and cooperation on combating fentanyl trafficking, according to the Chinese side.

Mr Greer said the negotiations had included rare earth metals, which are mostly produced in China and which are now subject to stringent export controls imposed in 2025 by Beijing.