The meetings are taking place at Lancaster House and include high-level officials such as US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. They are meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and other representatives.
Key topics are expected to include China's dominance in rare earth metals and Washington's limits on Chinese access to advanced technologies like semiconductors and artificial intelligence tools, reports the BBC.
“Some of the focus certainly seems to be on rare earths where China, of course, has dominance in terms of producing," said Swetha Ramachandran, a fund manager at Artemis. "They mine 69% of the rare earths globally that are quite essential to technology development in the US so I think there are enough chips on the table here that could make it acceptable for both sides to walk away with desired outcomes."
Tensions have remained high even after the May negotiations in Geneva, where both sides agreed to reduce tariffs and gave themselves 90 days to reach a broader deal. The US lowered its tariffs on Chinese imports to 30 percent, and Beijing dropped its duties on American goods to 10 percent, also agreeing to ease restrictions on critical minerals. However, both countries now accuse each other of violating aspects of that deal.
Greer has stated that China failed to remove restrictions on rare earth magnet exports. Beijing, meanwhile, claims the US breached the agreement by halting sales of chip design software, warning against Chinese telecom firm Huawei, and canceling visas for some Chinese students.
Over the weekend, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said it had granted some rare earth export licenses but did not name the countries involved.
On Friday, President Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed to resume rare earth trade. However, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said on Sunday that while exports had increased, "not as high as we believe we agreed to in Geneva," reports Bloomberg.
Last week’s phone call between Trump and Xi, described by the US president as a “very good talk,” helped lay the groundwork for the London meetings. Trump said the conversation “resulted in a very positive conclusion for both countries.”
Talks are taking place as China seeks to secure continued access to key US technology, and the US remains concerned about the supply of rare earth elements vital to its manufacturing and defense industries.
Earlier this year, Trump’s tariffs hit China particularly hard, sparking a round of retaliatory hikes that saw import duties peak at 145 percent
The presence of Lutnick was described as “a welcome addition” by Ramachandran.
