US and China unveil reciprocal tariff cuts covering $60 billion in trade

The United States and China have released lists of goods worth about $30 billion each that are slated for tariff reductions, covering consumer products, agricultural goods and industrial equipment while excluding strategic sectors.

The U.S. list includes 77 categories of Chinese goods, among them bed linen, garden umbrellas, toasters, fish hooks, billiard balls and other household or recreational products. China’s list covers 1,619 types of U.S. goods, including butter, lobster, foie gras, coal, MRI systems, rabbit hair and animals for breeding. China’s Commerce Ministry said tariffs on more than 90% of the listed products would fall to “most favoured nation” levels, according to state media.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the lists identify non-sensitive trade that could receive more favorable tariff treatment and represent improved access for about 30% of U.S. exports to China. Neither government announced when the reductions would take effect.

Semiconductors, batteries and electric vehicles were not included. Whole U.S. soybeans also remain outside China’s list and continue to face an additional 10% tariff, Reuters reported.

The announcement followed a Washington meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. That meeting also produced a two-month extension of a broader trade truce. Zhu Tian of the China Europe International Business School called the tariff reductions a positive step but not a major breakthrough, noting that strategic goods remain subject to other tariffs.