BEIJING: China suspended punitive tariffs on more US goods including radar equipment for aviation Tuesday amid pressure from President Donald Trump to buy more imports as part of a truce in their trade war.

The Ministry of Finance said tariff increases on 79 types of goods including radar sets, disinfectant and rare earths minerals would be suspended for one year starting May 19.

Washington agreed in January to cancel additional tariff hikes and Beijing committed to buy more American farm exports. US officials said China agreed to address complaints about its technology policies.

Trump threatened May 3 to terminate the agreement if China fails to buy more American goods.

Trump said earlier that Beijing agreed to buy $200 billion of American farm goods and other exports. China resumed purchases of American soybeans but has yet to confirm the size of its commitment.

Trumps threat rekindled fears in financial markets of more US-Chinese conflict and potential disruption of global trade at t a time when economies are reeling from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Published in Dawn, May 13th, 2020