TikTok and the Dangerous Drug: What We Know About the US-China Agreement.

 

Trump and Chinese

TikTok and the Dangerous Drug: What We Know About the US-China Agreement.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant indicated on Sunday that a preliminary agreement had been reached with China to ease their tariff-fueled trade tensions, days before a highly anticipated summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.

Besant told ABC's "This Week" that the threat of a 100 percent tariff on Chinese goods was withdrawn in exchange for Beijing postponing restrictions on its global exports of rare earths .

"I think we have avoided tariffs," he added after talks with Deputy Prime Minister He Lifeng in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.

Regarding the export restrictions, the US Secretary of State indicated that " China will postpone their implementation for a year while it reconsiders them."

The minister's remarks came as Trump began an Asian tour in Kuala Lumpur, which he will conclude with a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea.

Besant said he expects the two leaders to formally announce the agreement during their upcoming summit.

As trade negotiators from Washington and Beijing work to reach an agreement between the world's two largest economies , these are the key components of this potential deal, according to CNN:

Fentanyl

China's chief trade negotiator, Li Zhenggang, indicated that the two countries have reached consensus on efforts to combat the production of fentanyl , a drug that has become a leading cause of death among American minors in recent years.

The United States may lift or reduce the 20 percent tariff the Trump administration imposed on China in April, aimed at halting exports of precursor chemicals used in fentanyl manufacturing.

soybean

US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said China will make "significant" purchases of US soybeans .

Soybean farmers in states such as Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Indiana began harvesting this fall without receiving any purchase orders from China, which was previously the largest buyer of American soybeans, valued at $12.5 billion.

rare minerals

The general framework of the agreement may include postponing restrictions on rare earth export restrictions , a move that would have limited US access to critical materials used in military equipment, smartphones, televisions, and electric vehicle batteries.

TikTok application

Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping are expected to conclude an agreement to transfer ownership of the popular short video app TikTok , which was initially scheduled to be banned on January 20 but has since received several extensions.

The White House announced in September that a US investment group led by Oracle founder Larry Ellison would operate the app's algorithm, allowing it to continue operating in the United States to serve more than 170 million users.