U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke on Thursday at a time when stalled tariff negotiations between their two countries have roiled global trade.
The conversation was confirmed by the Chinese foreign ministry, which said Trump initiated the call. The White House did not immediately comment.
Trump had declared one day earlier that it was difficult to reach a deal with Xi.
“I like President XI of China, always have, and always will, but he is VERY TOUGH, AND EXTREMELY HARD TO MAKE A DEAL WITH!!!” Trump posted Wednesday on his social media site.
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Trade negotiations between the United States and China stalled shortly after a May 12 agreement between the two countries to reduce their tariff rates while talks played out. Behind the gridlock has been the continued competition for an economic edge.
The U.S. accuses China of not exporting critical minerals, and the Chinese government objects to America restricting its sale of advanced chips and its access to student visas for college and graduate students.
Trump has lowered his 145% tariffs on Chinese goods to 30% for 90 days to allow for talks. China also reduced its taxes on U.S. goods from 125% to 10%. The back and forth has caused sharp swings in global markets and threatens to hamper trade between the two countries.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had suggested that only a conversation between Trump and Xi could resolve these differences so that talks could restart in earnest. The underlying tension between the two countries may still persist, though.
Even if negotiations resume, Trump wants to lessen America’s reliance on Chinese factories and reindustrialize the U.S., whereas China wants the ability to continue its push into technologies such as electric vehicles and artificial intelligence that could be crucial to securing its economic future.
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The United States ran a trade imbalance of $295 billion with China in 2024, according to the Census Bureau. While the Chinese government’s focus on manufacturing has turned it into a major economic and geopolitical power, China has been muddling through a slowing economy after a real estate crisis and coronavirus pandemic lockdowns weakened consumer spending.
Trump and Xi had last spoken in January, three days before Inauguration Day. The pair discussed trade then, as well as Trump’s demands that China do more to prevent the synthetic opioid fentanyl from entering the United States.
Trump had long expressed optimism about the prospects for a major deal, before his post suggesting Xi was making that difficult. Last week, Trump went further, posting, “The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US,” Trump posted. “So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!”
