Handelskonflikt: Zu wenig seltene Erden: USA werfen China Verstoß gegen Handelsdeal vor

The recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese State and Party Chief Xi Jinping in Washington at the end of September appeared harmonious, masking the fact that it yielded little tangible results. This was evident on Friday evening when US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamie Peterson spoke with China's Vice Premier He Lifeng on the phone.

The US representatives accused China of providing insufficient rare earths to US companies and buying too few agricultural products from the United States. China, in turn, criticized recent US sanctions against Chinese companies, demanding that the other side honor their commitments under the trade agreement. As the planned re-meeting between Trump and Xi before the APEC summit on November 18-19 in Shenzhen looms, the trade conflict between China and the US threatens to erupt again.

After the Republican party's significant defeat in the US midterm elections, Trump arrives at the meeting weakened and more determined to demonstrate success. According to Bessent and Peterson, the extension of the trade truce on January 10 is crucial. Earlier, the trade conflict between China and the US escalated as the US imposed tariffs of up to 145 percent on Chinese imports, while China retaliated by halting exports of key industrial metals, for which it holds a de facto monopoly.