Talks resume in London to consolidate trade truce between Beijing and Washington

China and the United States resumed their trade negotiations in London on Tuesday, amid considerable secrecy, aiming to consolidate the fragile trade truce reached a month ago in Geneva despite their differences.

A US Treasury Department spokesperson told AFP that the second day of talks in the British capital between the world's two leading economic powers began Tuesday morning.

Markets are closely monitoring this new round of discussions, hoping for tangible progress similar to the recent Swiss negotiations, when Beijing and Washington reached an agreement to significantly reduce each other's tariffs for 90 days.

"I'm hearing some good news. Things are going very well with China. But China is not easy," Donald Trump told reporters late Monday.

He added, "We want to get China to open up, and if we're not successful, we probably won't do anything" on their behalf.

Chinese rare earth minerals are a key issue in the negotiations, as the United States hopes to restore shipments of these strategic minerals, which have slowed since the US president launched his global trade war in early April.

"In Geneva, we agreed to lower our tariffs, and they agreed to allow the export of magnets and rare earth minerals that we need," Trump's chief economic advisor, Kevin Hassett, told CNBC.

However, while China has allowed these exports, the pace is "much slower than what companies consider ideal," according to Hassett.

These raw materials are essential for electric batteries, wind turbines, and defense systems, including missiles, radars, and satellites.

For its part, China wants the United States to reconsider some of the export restrictions imposed on its products. When asked about this possibility, Trump tried to evade, saying, "We'll see."

Hassett pointed out that the goal is to have a "frank and firm handshake" between the two sides, after which "US export controls will be lifted, and rare earth minerals will arrive in large quantities."

Ipek Ozkardeskaya, an analyst at Swissquote Bank, said that a sense of relief prevailed in the markets on Monday following "rumors" that "the US may be ready to make concessions."

Kathleen Brooks, director of research at XTB, noted that "investors are ready to cling to any positive news related to trade," to the point that they are satisfied with simply extending the talks held at the historic Lancaster House building in the heart of London.

Vice Premier He Lifeng is representing China, as in the previous round in Geneva, accompanied by Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and International Trade Representative Li Zhengang.

Three members of the US government are attending the meeting: Treasury Secretary Scott Besant, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and White House Trade Representative Jameson Greer.

This meeting comes after a sudden escalation in tensions last week, when the US President accused Beijing of failing to respect the terms of the de-escalation agreement signed in Geneva. The US President then spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, which Donald Trump considered positive.

In Switzerland, Washington agreed to reduce tariffs on Chinese products from 145% to 30%, in exchange for a similar reduction from Beijing, from 125% to 10%, on US products, for 90 days.

However, the negative consequences of this situation are already being felt on the ground, as Chinese exports to the United States fell by 12.7% in May compared to April, according to official statistics from Beijing.

As the Chinese government works to normalize relations with Washington, it has engaged in discussions with other partners to form a common front against the United States.

Xi Jinping also called on his newly elected South Korean counterpart, Lee Jae-myung, on Tuesday to work with him to "jointly uphold multilateralism and free trade," according to state media.