US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks with reporters outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, DC, on October 22, 2025. JIM WATSON / AFP
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday, October 26, signaled a deal with China to avoid escalating a tariff-fueled trade war, just days before a summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. In an interview with ABC's This Week, Bessent said the US threat of a 100% tariff hike on Chinese goods had effectively been taken off the table in exchange for Beijing deferring curbs on its global rare earth exports.
"The tariffs will be averted," Bessent said after wrapping up talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur. On the export controls, China will "delay that for a year while they reexamine it," Bessent said. The secretary's remarks came as Trump kicked off an Asia tour in Kuala Lumpur that will culminate in a sit-down with Xi in South Korea.
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US and China reignite trade war with focus on rare earths and tariffs
