Latest news: China and the United States have canceled 91% of tariffs and suspended 24% of tariffs.
On May 12, 2025, in accordance with the Joint Statement of the China-US Geneva Economic and Trade Talks released by both sides, the two parties reached an important agreement on tariff adjustments¹. The specific contents are as follows³:
The US side will cancel 91% of the tariffs imposed on Chinese goods under Executive Order 14259 dated April 8, 2025, and Executive Order 14266 dated April 9, 2025. It will modify the 34% reciprocal tariffs imposed on Chinese goods under Executive Order 14257 dated April 2, 2025—among which, the imposition of 24% of the tariffs will be suspended for 90 days, while the remaining 10% of the tariffs will be retained.
The Chinese side will cancel 91% of the retaliatory tariffs imposed on US goods. Regarding the 34% retaliatory tariffs targeting the US reciprocal tariffs, the imposition of 24% of these tariffs will be suspended for 90 days correspondingly, and the remaining 10% will be retained. Meanwhile, the Chinese side will also suspend or cancel non-tariff retaliatory measures against the US accordingly.
Prior to this, the US tariff rate on Chinese goods had been raised from 34% to 84% and then to 125% in succession, and China had responded with reciprocal measures. The tariff levels of both sides reached a historical peak, which severely damaged the normal bilateral economic and trade exchanges and disrupted the international economic and trade order³.
This tariff adjustment is a targeted response to the unilateral tariff hikes imposed by the US in April 2025, marking a phased easing of the tariff war between the two sides since April. It will significantly reduce the trade costs for enterprises of both countries, and it is expected that the China-US bilateral trade volume will recover to the pre-tariff-war level within the next 6 months¹⁷.
