US open to extending China trade truce, or bigger deal, Bessent says after meeting with He

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the United States could extend its trade truce with China or seek a larger agreement after meeting with Chinese economic official He Lifeng. The remarks signal that Washington is keeping both a limited extension and a broader framework on the negotiating table.

The meeting comes as the current truce remains the immediate basis for US-China trade discussions. Bessent's comments change the stated range of outcomes from simply preserving the existing pause to potentially widening the arrangement, but they do not establish that a broader deal has been reached.

The main actors are the US Treasury and China's negotiating team, with Bessent's position tying the next stage of talks to tariff policy and the broader terms governing bilateral commerce. He Lifeng's participation makes the discussion part of the established senior-level economic channel between Washington and Beijing.

The comments describe US openness rather than a concluded agreement, and the final scope would depend on negotiations with China. No timetable or specific terms for an extension or larger deal were given in the reported remarks.

The next concrete markers are further US-China negotiations and any formal announcement on the truce's duration, tariff treatment or the terms of a broader agreement. The central open question is whether the talks produce a simple continuation of the pause or expand into a wider deal.