China has confirmed that a trade agreement has been reached with the United States

China on Friday confirmed the details of a trade agreement with the United States, stating that Washington would lift a series of “restrictive measures,” while Beijing would begin reviewing and approving exports subject to control regulations.

“We hope the United States and China can meet each other halfway,” a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.

The confirmation follows a White House announcement on Thursday that both countries had reached a mutual understanding, which includes accelerating the export of rare earth materials to the U.S.

The breakthrough builds on earlier discussions in Geneva this May, where the two sides agreed to temporarily ease retaliatory tariffs. China had also pledged to relax certain non-tariff countermeasures. However, U.S. officials later criticized Beijing for slow progress in approving export licenses for rare earth elements, alleging a breach of the agreement.

Subsequent negotiations in London helped both parties finalize a framework to advance the Geneva commitments.

A White House official told AFP on Thursday that President Donald Trump’s administration and China had reached an additional consensus on how to implement the Geneva agreement. This followed Trump’s statement at an event, where he said a new trade deal with China had “just been signed,” though no specifics were initially provided.

China’s commerce ministry confirmed on Friday that both sides have remained in close contact since the London talks.

“With the necessary approvals, both sides have recently finalized the framework details,” the ministry spokesperson added. “China will lawfully review and approve export control applications that meet the requirements, while the U.S. will lift corresponding restrictive measures.”