(MENAFN) The United States and China have reached a framework trade agreement ahead of this week’s meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told NBC. The deal includes plans to suspend a proposed 100% tariff on Chinese goods that was set to take effect on November 1, he said.


According to Bessent, during talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and top trade negotiator Li Chenggang at the ASEAN Summit in Malaysia, both sides agreed that Beijing would delay its planned export restrictions on rare earth minerals for one year while further negotiations continue.


The framework also covers the finalized sale of TikTok’s US operations and the resumption of Chinese purchases of US soybeans, which had been suspended since September amid the tariff dispute, the Treasury chief added.


Speaking to reporters in Malaysia, Li confirmed that the two countries had reached a “preliminary consensus” following “intense” negotiations and said the agreement now requires internal approval.


The announcement comes as the White House confirmed that Trump and Xi will meet on October 30 on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea. It will be their first meeting since 2019.

Trump said he hopes to reach agreements with Xi on a range of issues, including trade and nuclear power, and plans to discuss China’s purchases of Russian oil.

Beijing has reiterated that it has the right to maintain normal economic, trade, and energy relations with all countries, including Russia, calling Washington’s pressure to halt Russian oil imports a “typical move of unilateralism, bullying, and economic coercion.”

Russia has become one of the largest oil suppliers to both China and India since 2022. President Vladimir Putin has warned Western nations against adopting a “colonial tone” toward Beijing and New Delhi, arguing that such actions are intended to curb their economic growth.

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