GENEVA—Marathon conversations here between U.S. and China officials came to an end Saturday, with more talks scheduled for Sunday over the continuing trade war between the counties, according to people briefed on the discussions.
The talks, which were led on the American side by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, spanned at least eight hours and concluded without an announced deal. Officials from the countries arrived at the meeting site in Geneva at around 10 a.m. local time.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping decided to dispatch his top aides, The Wall Street Journal previously reported. Notably, in addition to his economic right-hand man, He Lifeng, Xi’s public-security minister, Wang Xiaohong, was also expected to be part of the Chinese entourage.
The first day of trade talks set the stage for a potential thawing of trade relations between the world’s two largest economies. Since starting his second term, Trump has slapped 145% tariffs on Chinese goods while Beijing has hit back with 125% duties on American products.
Though some U.S. and China officials departed the Saturday meeting early, Bessent and Greer remained for at least an extra hour to continue talks with the remaining Chinese delegation, according to one of the people briefed on the discussions. Bessent, Greer and other officials from both countries who remained were expected to have dinner at the meeting site. Earlier, Greer and Bessent were spotted having lunch with their respective teams, separate from the Chinese delegation at a nearby Italian restaurant.
The talks took place at the residence of the Swiss ambassador to the United Nations. The sprawling property is behind a massive gate on a small, one-way street. Dozens of law-enforcement officials, including the U.S. Secret Service, provided security. Both U.S. and Chinese officials were seen escorted to the site in black vehicles with tinted windows.
China’s state-run news agency Xinhua described Saturday’s meetings as “an important step toward resolving the dispute” between the two world powers.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has opened the door for lower tariffs. He said in recent days that they couldn’t get much higher than the current 145%, so that it was likely they would eventually come down. And Friday, he suggested lowering tariffs to 80%. On Friday night, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Fox News that the president is expected to keep significant so-called reciprocal tariffs on trade with China but may settle near 34%, which is the rate Trump announced on April 2.
Trump has said he wants fairer trade with Beijing—the president has often criticized China’s manufacturing power—and that he wants to curb its role in fentanyl trafficking into the U.S. It is likely the U.S. would want to see some commitments from China on either front before lowering tariffs.
Some administration officials viewed Trump’s 80% idea as a public message to encourage Bessent to try to get closer to completing an arrangement that would lower China’s tariff rate to around 80%, the Journal previously reported.
Write to Brian Schwartz at brian.schwartz@wsj.com