Top officials from the United States and China on Tuesday (Jun 10) said they reached an agreement on a “framework” after two days of high-level trade talks in London.&nbsp;&nbsp;US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed optimism, saying that concerns regarding rare earths “will be resolved.” Although the framework requires approval from leaders in Washington and Beijing, the officials said.&nbsp;Following the talks, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters, “We’re moving as quickly as we can.” He added, “We feel positive about engaging with the Chinese.”&nbsp;China International Trade Representative Li Chenggang separately told reporters, “Our communication has been very professional, rational, in-depth and candid.” He expressed hope that progress made during talks in London would help boost trust between both sides.&nbsp;Earlier on Tuesday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that trade talks with Chinese counterparts had been productive as both sides seek to negotiate a deal on tariffs. The talks stretched into the night on the second day of discussions between the US and China.&nbsp;Bessent left the meetings earlier to return to Washington for testimony before Congress, reported AFP, citing a US official. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and trade envoy Jamieson Greer, who were also part of the delegation, will continue the talks with Chinese counterparts.&nbsp;Lutnick told Bloomberg Television on Tuesday that the negotiations with China were “going well”.&nbsp;&nbsp;On Monday (Jun 9), US President Donald Trump told reporters, “We are doing well with China. China’s not easy.”&nbsp;The recent negotiations at the UK’s historic Lancaster House were followed by the trade talks in Geneva last month, after which a temporary agreement to lower tariffs was reached. The current round of talks is expected to focus on China’s export of rare earth minerals, which are used in a range of things, including electric vehicle batteries, smartphones, and green technology.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed optimism, saying that concerns regarding rare earths “will be resolved.” Although the framework requires approval from leaders in Washington and Beijing, the officials said.

Top officials from the United States and China on Tuesday (Jun 10) said they reached an agreement on a “framework” after two days of high-level trade talks in London. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed optimism, saying that concerns regarding rare earths “will be resolved.” Although the framework requires approval from leaders in Washington and Beijing, the officials said. Following the talks, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters, “We’re moving as quickly as we can.” He added, “We feel positive about engaging with the Chinese.” China International Trade Representative Li Chenggang separately told reporters, “Our communication has been very professional, rational, in-depth and candid.” He expressed hope that progress made during talks in London would help boost trust between both sides. Earlier on Tuesday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that trade talks with Chinese counterparts had been productive as both sides seek to negotiate a deal on tariffs. The talks stretched into the night on the second day of discussions between the US and China. Bessent left the meetings earlier to return to Washington for testimony before Congress, reported AFP, citing a US official. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and trade envoy Jamieson Greer, who were also part of the delegation, will continue the talks with Chinese counterparts. Lutnick told Bloomberg Television on Tuesday that the negotiations with China were “going well”. On Monday (Jun 9), US President Donald Trump told reporters, “We are doing well with China. China’s not easy.” The recent negotiations at the UK’s historic Lancaster House were followed by the trade talks in Geneva last month, after which a temporary agreement to lower tariffs was reached. The current round of talks is expected to focus on China’s export of rare earth minerals, which are used in a range of things, including electric vehicle batteries, smartphones, and green technology.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed optimism, saying that concerns regarding rare earths “will be resolved.” Although the framework requires approval from leaders in Washington and Beijing, the officials said.

US, China officials agree to ‘framework’ after trade talks in London, say concerns over rare earths ‘will be resolved’

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday (Jun 10) that trade talks with Chinese counterparts in London had been productive as both sides seek to negotiate a deal on tariffs. This comes as the meetings stretch into the night on the second day of discussions between the US and China.&nbsp;Bessent left the meetings earlier to return to Washington for testimony before Congress, reported AFP, citing a US official. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and trade envoy Jamieson Greer, who were also part of the delegation, will continue the talks with Chinese counterparts.Earlier on Tuesday, Lutnick told Bloomberg Television that the negotiations with China were “going well”.&nbsp;On Monday (Jun 9), US President Donald Trump told reporters, “We are doing well with China. China’s not easy.”&nbsp;The recent negotiations at the UK’s historic Lancaster House were followed by the trade talks in Geneva last month, after which a temporary agreement to lower tariffs was reached. The current round of talks is expected to focus on China’s export of rare earth minerals, which are used in a range of things, including electric vehicle batteries, smartphones, and green technology.&nbsp;“In Geneva, we had agreed to lower tariffs on them, and they had agreed to release the magnets and rare earths that we need throughout the economy,” Trump’s top economic adviser, Kevin Hassett told CNBC on Monday.&nbsp;He added that while Beijing was releasing some supplies, “it was going a lot slower than some companies believed was optimal.”&nbsp;“Our expectation is that after the handshake, any export controls from the US will be eased, and the rare earths will be released in volume,” Hassett said.&nbsp;Tensions between Washington and Beijing have risen since Trump took office in January this year and unleashed a tariff war against several trade allies. The Geneva talks temporarily brought down US tariffs on China from 145 per cent to 30 per cent and China’s tariffs on American goods from 125 per cent to 10 per cent. However, Trump later accused China of “totally violating” the deal.

The recent negotiations at the UK’s historic Lancaster House were followed by the trade talks in Geneva last month, after which a temporary agreement to lower tariffs was reached.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday (Jun 10) that trade talks with Chinese counterparts in London had been productive as both sides seek to negotiate a deal on tariffs. This comes as the meetings stretch into the night on the second day of discussions between the US and China. Bessent left the meetings earlier to return to Washington for testimony before Congress, reported AFP, citing a US official. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and trade envoy Jamieson Greer, who were also part of the delegation, will continue the talks with Chinese counterparts. Earlier on Tuesday, Lutnick told Bloomberg Television that the negotiations with China were “going well”. On Monday (Jun 9), US President Donald Trump told reporters, “We are doing well with China. China’s not easy.” The recent negotiations at the UK’s historic Lancaster House were followed by the trade talks in Geneva last month, after which a temporary agreement to lower tariffs was reached. The current round of talks is expected to focus on China’s export of rare earth minerals, which are used in a range of things, including electric vehicle batteries, smartphones, and green technology. “In Geneva, we had agreed to lower tariffs on them, and they had agreed to release the magnets and rare earths that we need throughout the economy,” Trump’s top economic adviser, Kevin Hassett told CNBC on Monday. He added that while Beijing was releasing some supplies, “it was going a lot slower than some companies believed was optimal.” “Our expectation is that after the handshake, any export controls from the US will be eased, and the rare earths will be released in volume,” Hassett said. Tensions between Washington and Beijing have risen since Trump took office in January this year and unleashed a tariff war against several trade allies. The Geneva talks temporarily brought down US tariffs on China from 145 per cent to 30 per cent and China’s tariffs on American goods from 125 per cent to 10 per cent. However, Trump later accused China of “totally violating” the deal.

The recent negotiations at the UK’s historic Lancaster House were followed by the trade talks in Geneva last month, after which a temporary agreement to lower tariffs was reached.

US-China trade talks ‘going well’ as Treasury chief Bessent returns to Washington

US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed to allow rare earth minerals and magnets to flow to the United States, a step that could ease tensions between the world's largest economies. Asked by a reporter on Air Force One if Xi had consented to do so, Trump responded: “Yes, he did.” However, the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment on a request. Trump made the comment a day after making a rare phone call to Xi with the intention of resolving trade tensions that had been building over the issue for weeks. Trump had said there had been "a very positive conclusion" to the discussions, going on to say that "there should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of Rare Earth products." In a further indication of relaxing tensions on the matter, China has issued temporary export licenses to the rare-earth suppliers of the three leading US automakers, two sources close to the issue said. Top aides to the US president are due to meet their Chinese counterparts in London on Monday for more talks. "We're very far advanced on the China deal," Trump said on Friday.<h3>What are rare earths?</h3>There are 17 types of metals known as rare earths, which are found near the bottom of the periodic table. Most of them are not actually very rare — they are all over the world, though seldom in large enough ore deposits to be mined efficiently. &nbsp;They are called rare because it is very difficult to separate them from each other. Breaking the chemical bonds that bind them in nature can require more than 100 stages of processing and large quantities of powerful acids.<h3>Why does China control so much of the rare earth supply?</h3>China mines 70 percent of the world’s rare earths. Myanmar, Australia and the United States mine most of the rest. But China does the chemical processing for 90 percent of the world’s rare earths because it refines all of its own ore and also practically all of Myanmar’s and nearly half of US production. &nbsp;China’s dominance is greatest for seven rare earths that it has mostly stopped exporting since early April: dysprosium, gadolinium, lutetium, samarium, scandium, terbium and yttrium. These are mined almost exclusively in China and Myanmar and are among the hardest to separate chemically. For metals like dysprosium and terbium, so-called heavy rare earths that are used for heat-resistant magnets, China’s refineries produce up to 99.9 percent of the world’s supply. China has some of the world’s best deposits of heavy rare earths. These are found in a band of ore that is particularly rich in a valley near Longnan in south-central China, extending west into northernmost Myanmar.

Trump claims rare earth win amid complex US-China trade chessboard | Will it be the decisive pawn in upcoming London trade talks?

US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed to allow rare earth minerals and magnets to flow to the United States, a step that could ease tensions between the world's largest economies. Asked by a reporter on Air Force One if Xi had consented to do so, Trump responded: “Yes, he did.” However, the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment on a request. Trump made the comment a day after making a rare phone call to Xi with the intention of resolving trade tensions that had been building over the issue for weeks. Trump had said there had been "a very positive conclusion" to the discussions, going on to say that "there should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of Rare Earth products." In a further indication of relaxing tensions on the matter, China has issued temporary export licenses to the rare-earth suppliers of the three leading US automakers, two sources close to the issue said. Top aides to the US president are due to meet their Chinese counterparts in London on Monday for more talks. "We're very far advanced on the China deal," Trump said on Friday. What are rare earths? There are 17 types of metals known as rare earths, which are found near the bottom of the periodic table. Most of them are not actually very rare — they are all over the world, though seldom in large enough ore deposits to be mined efficiently. They are called rare because it is very difficult to separate them from each other. Breaking the chemical bonds that bind them in nature can require more than 100 stages of processing and large quantities of powerful acids. Why does China control so much of the rare earth supply? China mines 70 percent of the world’s rare earths. Myanmar, Australia and the United States mine most of the rest. But China does the chemical processing for 90 percent of the world’s rare earths because it refines all of its own ore and also practically all of Myanmar’s and nearly half of US production. China’s dominance is greatest for seven rare earths that it has mostly stopped exporting since early April: dysprosium, gadolinium, lutetium, samarium, scandium, terbium and yttrium. These are mined almost exclusively in China and Myanmar and are among the hardest to separate chemically. For metals like dysprosium and terbium, so-called heavy rare earths that are used for heat-resistant magnets, China’s refineries produce up to 99.9 percent of the world’s supply. China has some of the world’s best deposits of heavy rare earths. These are found in a band of ore that is particularly rich in a valley near Longnan in south-central China, extending west into northernmost Myanmar.

Trump's statement came a day after a rare call with Xi&nbsp;aimed at resolving trade tensions that have been brewing over the topic for weeks