Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks on Thursday amid escalating tensions over trade tariffs.
According to Chinese state media outlet Xinhua, the phone call took place at Mr Trump’s request and has sparked renewed speculation about a possible breakthrough in the prolonged trade dispute. However, no further details about the conversation were released.
The discussion follows a recent post by Mr Trump on Truth Social, where he admitted to struggling to secure a deal with Xi, despite declaring a “total reset” in US-China relations earlier in May. “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 wrote.
The two leaders have been locked in a tariff battle for weeks, with duties peaking at 145% on Chinese goods entering the US and 125% on US exports to China in retaliation.
A temporary truce later saw those tariffs reduced to 30% and 10% respectively, but tensions flared again this week when Beijing accused Washington of “severely” breaching the agreement and vowed to protect its interests.
Trump’s ongoing trade war, with China as the primary focus, has rattled global markets and disrupted trade flows between the world’s two largest economies.
Fresh data released this week showed Chinese imports to the US fell to their lowest level since 2020 in April, highlighting the toll the standoff is taking on bilateral commerce and investor confidence.
