US-China Trade Truce Extended Until January 10: A Landmark Diplomatic Development

In a significant diplomatic breakthrough, the United States and China have agreed to prolong their bilateral trade truce, termed the “Busan Agreement”, until January 10, 2027. This announcement was made by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday. The revelation came just as Chinese President Xi Jinping landed at Joint Base Andrews, marking his first state visit to the United States in 11 years.

President Donald Trump broke with tradition by personally welcoming Xi on the tarmac. This is the first instance in over a decade where a U.S. president has greeted a foreign leader at the base. The summit, which took place at the White House on Thursday, centered around high-stakes discussions on trade, artificial intelligence, Taiwan, and the ongoing conflict with Iran.

The original truce was agreed upon during a Trump-Xi meeting in Busan, South Korea, in October 2025. It was due to expire in November and maintained tariffs on Chinese goods at approximately 20%. In return, it secured Chinese commitments to resume shipments of critical rare earth minerals. Bessent highlighted that Beijing still has more obligations to meet as part of the agreement.

In a noteworthy development, China’s Commerce Ministry confirmed that U.S. and Chinese negotiators held discussions specifically on artificial intelligence. This is a landmark step in managing the technological rivalry between the world’s two largest economies. A grand state dinner at the White House saw the gathering of top U.S. tech executives, including Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai, Jensen Huang, and Sam Altman.

Source: CNBC – U.S.-China trade truce extended for two months, Bessent says