PARIS – The United States and China are weighing a formal “US-China Board of Trade” to guide bilateral economic relations and address trade imbalances, top US officials revealed after intensive talks in Paris.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer floated the idea on March 16, describing it as a structured forum to define mutual imports and exports. “We talked about potentially having even a mechanism with the US and China, almost like what we might call a US-China Board of Trade,” Greer said at the close of 36 hours of discussions paving the way for a summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Beijing.
China’s Vice Minister of Commerce Li Chenggang echoed support for a working group to boost trade and investment cooperation. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking alongside Greer, highlighted in-depth exchanges on the Trump administration’s upcoming tariff plans, calling the sessions “constructive” and indicative of a stable partnership.
The talks come as the US adapts its trade strategy following a Supreme Court ruling invalidating Trump’s emergency tariffs. Greer briefed Chinese counterparts on ongoing policy shifts and investigations, stressing that “the president’s trade policy hasn’t changed, our tools may change.”
On Trump’s planned China visit, originally set for late March, Bessent downplayed delays on CNBC, while White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News the summit remains on track but could slip. This builds on regular engagements led by Bessent and Greer with Vice-Premier He Lifeng since May 2025, reviving elements of the Obama-era Strategic and Economic Dialogue that Trump scrapped in his first term.