The investigation was suspended as part of an agreement to ease tensions, with Beijing pledging to suspend or cancel non-tariff countermeasures against Washington.
China has suspended its antitrust investigation into the local unit of DuPont de Nemours Inc. in a potential goodwill gesture ahead of the third round of trade talks with the US next week.
In a one-line statement issued on Tuesday, the State Administration for Market Regulation didn’t provide further details on the suspension of investigation into DuPont China Group over the firm’s suspected violation of the nation’s anti-monopoly law.
The investigation was among a flurry of countermeasures China announced in early April to hit back against President Donald Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs on Chinese products. The halt of the probe is part of an agreement struck by trade negotiators in Geneva in May designed to ease tensions, with Beijing pledging to suspend or cancel non-tariff countermeasures against Washington.
China’s announcement came shortly after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that he will meet his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm next week for their third round of trade talks.
The countries’ current truce is set to expire on Aug. 12, and Bessent said that negotiations can encompass a broader array of topics, potentially including Beijing’s continued purchases of “sanctioned” oil from Russia and Iran.
That adds to signs of a de-escalation in tensions between the world’s biggest economies.
China last month boosted shipments of rare earth magnets, including to the US, after a global supply squeeze that threatened factory closures and inflamed trade tensions. Still, total exports were substantially lower than before Beijing launched export controls in early April and Bessent said earlier this month that shipments weren’t flowing fast enough.
Source: Bloomberg
