Beijing lifts some tariffs on US farm goods but soybeans stay costly

BEIJING, Nov 5 (Reuters): China will suspend retaliatory tariffs on US imports, including duties on farm goods, after last week's meeting of the two countries' leaders, Beijing confirmed on Wednesday, but imports of US soybeans still face a 13 per cent tariff.

The tariff commission of the State Council, or cabinet, will scrap duties of up to 15 per cent imposed on some US agricultural goods from November 10, while keeping levies of 10 per cent introduced in response to President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" duties.

Investors on both sides of the Pacific were relieved when Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, easing fears that the world's two largest economies might abandon talks to resolve a tariff war that has disrupted global supply chains.

Trump and the White House were quick to issue their take on the meeting, but the Chinese side did not immediately give a detailed summary of what it had agreed.

"Broadly, it's a great sign that the two sides are making rapid progress in putting the deal into effect," said Even Rogers Pay, a director at Beijing-based Trivium China. "It shows they're aligned and that the agreement is likely to hold up."