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Trump returns from Beijing with trade tariffs toned down, but U S China strategic stalemate remains unchanged
International
Published on 16 May 2026
Xi gets breathing room as tariffs revert to stability
President Donald Trump’s Beijing visit delivered only modest summit deliverables, but it did reset the U.S.-China relationship into a familiar economic and strategic standoff. After last year’s trade war escalated with “Liberation Day” tariffs, the two leaders’ two-day talks with Xi Jinping signaled a return to “constructive strategic stability.” Key issues—U.S. concerns over trade practices and Indo-Pacific military buildup—went largely unaddressed, leaving China a fragile truce and the U.S. limited gains.
- Two days of Trump and Xi talks ended without major new commitments
- China benefits from a shift away from 2025’s most extreme trade stance
- Experts cite tariffs previously peaking at 145% as a reason for “back to stability”
- U S sought Iran progress, but the summit secured no public help commitment
- Boeing sales and agricultural agreements were cited as U S deliverables
- Long-standing demands like China industrial overcapacity were not publicly raised
Read the full story at The Economic Times
This summarization was done by Beige for a story published on 
The Economic Times