China and US agree to establish trade and investment councils

China and the United States have reached an agreement to form trade and investment councils, pledging to implement reciprocal reductions in tariffs. This development comes after discussions between President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump. Both nations, the largest economies globally, have also committed to lowering non-tariff barriers on agricultural goods, which encompass Chinese seafood, dairy, and American beef and poultry. Furthermore, China plans to acquire a minimum of 200 commercial aircraft from Boeing, with the possibility of increasing that number to 750, thus ending a nearly ten-year gap in orders. The US will provide jet engines and components to China, including a contract for up to 450 engines from General Electric. The Ministry of Commerce indicated that the Trade Council will facilitate discussions on specific tariff reductions, though additional details were not disclosed. Progress was noted in both agricultural trade and aircraft sectors.