U.S. and China Publish Target List of Goods for Potential Tariff Cuts After Trump‑Xi Summit

The United States and China have published a list of products slated for potential tariff reductions following last week’s summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.

The list, released on Sunday, follows a commitment by Trump and Xi to lower tariffs on roughly $60 billion of trade.

The accord, covering $30 billion of imports on each side, enumerates 77 Chinese items and over 1,600 U.S. products for possible preferential tariff treatment.

Among the Chinese items are microwave ovens, fish hooks, artificial flowers and weighing scales.

U.S. exports slated for lower tariffs comprise poultry, dairy products, noodles, eggs, peanuts, canned tomatoes, pure‑breed horses and silk.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the deal would expand market access for roughly 30 % of American exports to China and benefit U.S. consumers.

“The Trump Administration will continue to pursue fair, balanced, and reciprocal trade with China by ensuring compliance with commitments on agricultural and energy purchases, pursuing balanced trade in non‑sensitive goods, and securing market access for American farmers, manufacturers, businesses, and workers,” Greer said in a statement.

China’s Ministry of Commerce, confirming the list on Monday after the White House announcement, said the sides would discuss “a reciprocal tariff reduction framework of $30 billion for $30 billion, aiming to reach a consensus”.

“This arrangement will help stabilize China‑U.S. trade, create better conditions for Chinese exports of relevant products to the U.S., meet domestic market demand, and strengthen trade cooperation in agricultural products, energy, manufactured goods, and consumer goods,” the ministry said.

While the Trump‑Xi summit was marked by ceremonial pomp, the talks concluded on Friday with few concrete deliverables on the wide‑ranging differences between the two superpowers, spanning trade, artificial intelligence and Taiwan.

Trump and Xi, who have held three face‑to‑face meetings since last October, are expected to meet again at the Asia‑Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen, China, in November, and at the Group of 20 gathering in Miami, Florida, in December.

Trade between the U.S. and China, the world’s two largest economies, has declined sharply since Trump, a longtime critic of free‑trade policies, returned to the White House in January 2024. Two‑way trade totaled $495 billion in 2025, down 25 % from the previous year, according to the U.S. Trade Representative.

Deborah Elms, head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation in Singapore, said the latest announcement does not signal a major shift in U.S.–China trade.

“Instead, both sides have largely listed goods that do not move the needle on overall trade flows,” Elms told Al Jazeera.

“They may reduce some prices in the U.S. for consumers, but none is going to make a dramatic difference in inflation figures or result in meaningful sighs of relief by most U.S. buyers,” Elms added.

“The same is broadly true with the Chinese list. Although there are many different agricultural products on the list, most are not actually exported to China or not exported in meaningful quantities.”

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