BEIJING: China announced on Wednesday that it plans to purchase 200 Boeing aircraft and push for an extension of its trade truce with the United States beyond its November expiry, following a high-level meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump aimed at easing tensions between the two nations.
According to China’s commerce ministry, the agreement includes the long-anticipated Boeing order, although officials did not specify which aircraft models would be included. If completed, the deal would represent Boeing’s first significant sale to China in almost ten years, after prolonged trade disputes severely limited the American manufacturer’s presence in the Chinese aviation market.
During Trump’s recent visit to Beijing, both sides unveiled a series of economic commitments covering aviation, agriculture, and tariffs. Trump stated that the number of Boeing planes purchased could eventually increase to 750 and noted that the aircraft would use engines supplied by GE Aerospace. China also said the United States would guarantee supplies of aircraft engine parts and related components as part of the arrangement.
On trade, Beijing said both countries are discussing reciprocal tariff reductions covering goods worth more than $30 billion. China stressed that any U.S. tariffs should remain within levels agreed under last year’s framework. Economists viewed the development as a modest but encouraging step toward stabilising relations between the world’s two largest economies.
The current tariff truce was originally extended for one year after negotiations held in Kuala Lumpur ahead of a Trump-Xi meeting in South Korea last October. That agreement involved reductions in U.S. tariffs on selected Chinese products and a temporary halt to China’s restrictions on rare earth minerals and magnets, materials critical for sectors such as electronics, electric vehicles, and defence manufacturing.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently said Washington was not rushing to extend the agreement, suggesting further negotiations would take place in the coming months.
China’s commerce ministry added that both countries would continue discussions over export controls and that Beijing remains open to approving export licences for rare earth materials intended for civilian purposes.
The two sides also reported progress in agricultural trade. The White House said China would buy at least $17 billion worth of U.S. agricultural products between 2026 and 2028, excluding existing soybean commitments. While Beijing did not confirm the figure, it acknowledged positive progress in agricultural cooperation and market access.
China further announced it would restore registrations for qualified U.S. beef exporters and resume imports of certain American poultry products. In return, the United States pledged to ease several non-tariff restrictions affecting Chinese agricultural exports, including measures that would support Chinese dairy shipments to the U.S.
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