US to Seek Public Comment on Chinese Goods for Tariff Cuts

The United States government will shortly issue a formal call for public comment to determine which Chinese imports should qualify for lower tariffs under a newly established bilateral “Board of Trade,” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced on Tuesday. The move represents the first concrete step toward implementing the trade framework agreed upon during the Trump-Xi summit in Beijing earlier this month.

Speaking at a Council on Foreign Relations gathering in Washington, Greer confirmed that his office would publish a Federal Register notice opening the process to American businesses and the public. “We’ll be putting out a Federal Register notice shortly,” Greer said, according to the South China Morning Post. “I’ve seen it, I’ve looked at it, I’ve redlined it personally, and it will be setting up what we’re going to do on the US side, which in the first instance is to put out a call for public comment.”

The $30 Billion Framework

The public comment process is designed to identify approximately US$30 billion worth of non-strategic commercial goods on which both nations can mutually lower or eliminate duties. Greer framed the initiative in practical terms, asking: “If we picked like US$30 billion worth of goods that we wanted to sell [to] China, and we picked out US$30 billion of goods we wanted to buy from China, and we think that’s beneficial trade for us, and we could consider modifying these tariffs to be not quite as high as what we have otherwise, what would those goods be?”

According to Xinhua News Agency, products of mutual concern as agreed by both sides are expected to enjoy most-favored-nation (MFN) tariff rates or even lower rates. A Chinese Ministry of Commerce official stated that “once implemented, the arrangement will not only help stabilize and expand bilateral trade between China and the United States, but also serve as a useful reference for global open cooperation.”

Background: The Xi-Trump Summit

The tariff reduction mechanism was agreed upon during the May 13-15 summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. The two leaders agreed to establish a Board of Trade alongside a parallel Board of Investment to manage economic relations, as reported by the South China Morning Post. The bilateral consultations held in Seoul on May 12-13 served as the preparatory groundwork for the summit.

Al Jazeera noted that U.S. and Chinese readouts of the summit differed significantly. While Washington emphasized trade deals and agreements on Iran, Beijing’s statements focused on Taiwan and strategic stability. The two sides “only overlap in limited areas,” the outlet reported, raising questions about the durability of the agreements.

A Pragmatic Shift in U.S. Strategy

Perhaps the most significant aspect of Greer’s announcement was his acknowledgment that the administration has “come to terms” with the fact that China will not fundamentally change its political-economic model. This marks a pragmatic departure from earlier U.S. efforts to force structural economic reforms in China through tariff pressure.

According to Nikkei Asia, the $30 billion-for-$30 billion framework represents a “managed trade” approach, where both sides agree on specific volumes and categories of goods for tariff reduction, rather than pursuing comprehensive liberalization through a traditional free trade agreement.

Broader Trade Outcomes

The consultations also yielded progress in several specific sectors. China has agreed to purchase 200 Boeing aircraft, though this fell short of the 500 jets predicted by markets, causing Boeing shares to fall by more than 4 percent. The United States, in turn, will guarantee China a sufficient supply of engines and spare parts.

In agricultural trade, the Seoul Economic Daily reported that China has decided to restore the registration eligibility of U.S. beef exporters that had been barred from shipping to China due to lapsed qualifications. The United States agreed to lift automatic detention measures on dairy products and dairy-containing foods imported from China, which had been in place since 2008.

What’s Next

The public comment process will provide critical insight into which U.S. industries and sectors stand to benefit most from the tariff reductions. The Federal Register notice is expected to specify the duration of the comment period and the criteria for evaluating which goods should qualify for lower rates.

However, significant differences in U.S. and Chinese narratives about what was agreed upon at the summit, combined with ongoing tensions over Taiwan, rare earth export controls, and the Iran war, suggest that implementation may face challenges. The managed trade approach creates new opportunities for certain sectors while leaving others disappointed, and the durability of the framework will depend on both sides’ ability to bridge their divergent expectations.