Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that near the end of President Trump’s first term, there was an “excellent” trade agreement in place with China but once President Biden took office, Beijing simply ignored it.
“In January 2020, President Trump produced a template—we had an excellent trade agreement with China—and the Biden administration chose not to enforce it," Bessent said during a news conference. "The Chinese delegation basically told us that once President Biden came into office, they just ignored their obligation, so we already have a large framework."
.@SecScottBessent: "We had an excellent trade agreement with China — and the Biden Administration chose not to enforce it. The Chinese delegation basically told us that once President Biden came into office, they just ignored their obligations." pic.twitter.com/Sv8pxVrazf
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 12, 2025
On Jan. 15, 2020, the U.S. and China signed an enforceable Phase One trade deal that required “structural reforms and other changes to China’s economic and trade regime.”
"Today, we take a momentous step — one that has never been taken before with China — toward a future of fair and reciprocal trade, as we sign phase one of the historic trade deal between the United States and China," Trump said at the time. "Together, we are righting the wrongs of the past and delivering a future of economic justice and security for American workers, farmers, and families."
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On Monday, the U.S. and China reached an agreement to significantly roll back tariffs for an initial 90-day period.
Following a weekend of marathon trade negotiations in Switzerland, the U.S. agreed to slash its overall tariffs on Chinese goods to 30 percent while Beijing lowered its tariffs on American imports to 10 percent.
“We concluded that we have a shared interest,” Bessent said. “The consensus from both delegations is that neither side wanted a decoupling.”
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