“The US has announced a China trade agreement in Geneva,” read the White House headline.
Bessent and Greer spoke optimistically about the state of a potential trade deal with China. The administration noted that it will provide additional details on Monday. Greer mentioned “agreement” and “deals,” but neither official provided details. China has not yet publicly weighed on whether or not the two countries have made a deal.
“We are pleased to report that great progress has been made between the US and China in a very important trade talks,” Bescent told reporters, adding that “the consultations were productive.”
In Bessent and Greer’s brief remarks (which lasted more than two minutes), Greer appeared to refer to the agreement between the two when he touted the speech as constructive.
“This was a very constructive two days, as the secretary pointed out,” Greer said. “It is important to understand how quickly we were able to reach agreement, which probably reflects that the differences weren’t as big as thoughts.
Greer went on to refer to the trade deficit with China, saying “we are confident” that “contracts with Chinese partners have worked to resolve the country’s emergency.”
In April, Trump declared that “foreign trade and economic practices have created a national emergency.”
A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday.
Bescent said he and Greer spoke with Trump on Saturday, and the president was “fully informed of what’s going on.”
White House officials heading for the weekend showed they were eager to negotiate, even if the US insisted that it would unilaterally lower its obligations without concessions from the Chinese.
“I think we’re going to have a good weekend with China,” Trump said in a presentation on the preliminary UK trade agreement on Thursday.
MNA