US-China trade talks: what to expect as senior officials meet in Paris

South China Morning PostCenter-RightEN 1 min read 100% complete by Xiaofei XuMarch 13, 2026 at 04:00 PM

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US and Chinese senior officials, including Vice-Premier He Lifeng and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, will meet in Paris this weekend to discuss trade. The talks, taking place from March 14-17, are intended to prepare for a summit between President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump later in March. Discussions will likely cover potential agreements on tariffs, investment, trade in soybeans, and rare earths. Analysts suggest that the meeting aims to maintain the current trade truce, as China seeks economic stability and the US focuses on upcoming midterm elections. Both sides appear to have a short-term interest in avoiding further escalation of trade tensions.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Philippe Le Corre 40% Asia Society Policy Institute 40% Beijing ×260% US Treasury 60% He Lifeng ×270% Paris ×480% Scott Bessent ×380% China ×590% Donald Trump ×490% United States 90% Xi Jinping ×490%

Keywords

us-china trade talks 100% xi-trump summit 80% trade 70% tariffs 70% trade truce 60% midterm elections 60% investment 50% economic environment 50% rare earths 40%

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Neutral

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South China Morning Post

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Center-Right (0.50)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

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90%

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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us-china trade talks xi-trump summit trade tariffs trade truce midterm elections investment economic environment rare earths

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