The “intricacies” of a preliminary U.S.-China trade agreement were the subject of a “very good phone call” that lasted almost an hour and a half, according to President Donald Trump, who claimed he spoke with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Thursday.
During the call, Trump indicated that he had made headway on a major source of contention: American access to China’s rare-earth metals, or REMX, which are essential for high-tech products like electric cars. However, he provided no information on how he resolved the issue, so investors and business executives will continue to monitor it.
Trump stated in a social media post, “There should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of Rare Earth products,” without providing further details.
China was meant to have loosened export restrictions on rare-earth magnets as part of last month’s preliminary agreement with the United States, but Beijing has been slow-walking licensing applications for magnets, so automakers have been scrambling to find ways around this. The Wall Street Journal reported as much.
Later Thursday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that the call with Xi focused on rare-earth magnets, but he did not elaborate. He continued: “We were straightening out some of the points, having to do mostly with rare-earth magnets and some other things.”
The timing of future discussions between Chinese officials and the Trump administration is another crucial issue. The two countries’ “respective teams will be meeting shortly at a location to be determined,” according to Trump’s social media post, and an announcement will be made “as to scheduling and location of the soon to be meeting.”
Trump told reporters that U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick would meet with Chinese officials. “I think we’re in very good shape with China and the trade deal,” he stated.
Additionally, according to Trump, every president sent an offer to his counterpart to visit, and each accepted. Trump claims that the discussion was nearly exclusively about trade and did not touch on Iran or the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Following a report earlier Thursday by Chinese state media that the two leaders had spoken at the American president’s request, Trump made his remarks regarding the call with Xi.
The Chinese embassy in the United States stated in a social media post regarding the call that American leadership “should acknowledge the progress already made, and remove the negative measures taken against China.” In order to avoid dragging China and the United States “into the dangerous terrain of confrontation and even conflict,” it also urged the United States to handle the Taiwan issue “with prudence.”
