US-China trade talks: ‘Moving forward’ towards final agreement; Trump expresses hope for 'comprehensive deal' with Xi

The announcement comes after the latest round of trade talks in Malaysia, which began on Saturday, as both nations sought to prevent further escalation of a costly tariff dispute. “The Chinese and US delegations convened on Saturday morning for talks on economic and trade issues,” the official Xinhua news agency reported, as cited by AFP.Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng is leading a delegation in Malaysia from October 24 to 27 to hold discussions with the United States, the Chinese commerce ministry said. The talks are focused on “important issues in the economic and trade relationship between China and the United States,” the ministry added.Tensions between the two countries have intensified in recent weeks. US President Donald Trump threatened 155% additional tariffs on Chinese imports. This came after Beijing’s introduction of sweeping controls on its rare earths industry earlier this month. Both countries have also imposed fees on each other’s shipments, following a US “Section 301” investigation that concluded China’s dominance in the sector was unreasonable.

Trump had warned that he might cancel his anticipated meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, scheduled on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit beginning October 31. Despite the mounting tensions, the US president emphasised his goal of securing a “good” deal with China and bringing the trade war to an end.The timing of the Malaysian talks coincided with President Trump’s visit to Kuala Lumpur for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting from October 26 to 28, further highlighting the strategic importance of these discussions.