US-China tariffs cut on 30 billion: what changes for buyers in China

MONDAY, 28 SEPTEMBER 2026

The Chinese list includes tableware, Christmas ornaments, toys and footballs. For Europe duties do not change, but the suppliers are the same.

US-China tariffs fall on about 30 billion dollars of goods on each side: the two lists published on 28 September bring over 90% of the covered products back to most-favoured-nation levels, that is, to ordinary World Trade Organization duties. On the Chinese side the list includes items of close interest to buyers of consumer and promotional goods: tableware, Christmas ornaments, toys and footballs.

What the US-China tariffs deal provides

The agreement came out of the eighth round of economic and trade consultations, held in New York and Washington from 20 to 23 September, coinciding with Xi Jinping's state visit to the United States, his first since 2015. The reductions will take effect simultaneously, once each country has completed the procedures required by its own law: no precise date has been announced yet.

• About 30 billion dollars of goods on each side covered by reciprocal tariff reductions.
• Over 90% of listed products brought back to most-favoured-nation duties, often in single digits.
• 77 categories of Chinese goods on the US list, against 1,619 items of American products on the Chinese one.
• 10 January 2027: new expiry of the trade truce, which would have ended in November 2026.
• Up to 145%: the peak reached in 2025 by US tariffs on Chinese goods, before subsequent reductions.

Which Chinese products are on the list

The 77 Chinese categories are few compared with over 1,600 American items, but they are concentrated in low-unit-value, highly seasonal consumer goods: fireworks, tableware, toys such as dolls and puzzles, glass and wooden Christmas ornaments, footballs. On the US side the list ranges from agricultural products to timber, from personal care products to medical equipment.

It is a selection that concerns precisely the manufacturing districts many European importers of homeware, household goods and gadgets turn to. The reduction does not touch Europe: the duties paid on entry into the Union for these products stay the same.

Why it matters to buyers for Europe too

The deal changes relative convenience for the American buyer, not the European one. The data does not show that Chinese factories in these categories will be saturated, or that prices will rise: that will depend on how much US importers return to ordering, and on when the reductions take effect. It does signal a possible rise in demand on exactly the suppliers many Italian companies use, at the time of year when Christmas production is already at its peak.

What it means for importers

The first check concerns orders for the fourth quarter and early 2027. If you buy ornaments, tableware, toys or footballs from Chinese suppliers, it is worth confirming production slots and shipping dates now rather than waiting: a recovery in US orders may fill the lines of the largest suppliers first.

The second concerns price lists. A supplier with more demand has fewer reasons to grant discounts; it therefore pays to fix prices in writing, with explicit validity, on orders already negotiated. The third concerns duration: the truce expires on 10 January 2027 and the reductions do not yet have an application date, so the picture may change again within a few months.

A truce with an expiry date

The two-month extension keeps the truce in place while the two governments explore whether a broader economic agreement is possible. It is a sign of continuity, not a final deal: until 10 January the framework holds, after that it depends on the negotiations.

With La Merce, an order of Christmas ornaments, tableware or footballs from China for the winter is locked in now with written production slots and price, before the 30 billion list brings American buyers back to the same suppliers.

Let's talk about your productprojectconceptgoalbrandproductprojectconceptgoalbrandproductprojectconceptgoalbrandproduct