U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators agreed over the weekend to lower mutually imposed triple-digit tariffs in a significant de-escalation of the ongoing trade war between Washington, D.C., and Beijing.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday after talks in Switzerland that “substantial progress” had been made between the two countries.

China and the U.S. agreed to suspend their reciprocal tariffs for 90 days to continue negotiations.

The U.S. dropped its baseline tariff rate on Chinese goods from 145 percent to 30 percent, which includes a 20 percent import tax Trump imposed during his first term and another 10 percent import tax levied in February as a response to fentanyl imports.

China agreed to lower its tariff to 10 percent from 125 percent.

Analysts say the U.S. baseline 30-percent tariff likely stacks on top of pre-existing Section 301 tariffs for an effective rate of up to 55 percent for some sector-specific goods.

The U.S. and China released a positively-toned joint statement after weekend talks about the importance of “a sustainable, long-term, and mutually beneficial economic and trade relationship.”

Analysts are viewing the de-escalation as a halftime break in initial negotiations. Here are five takeaways on the preliminary arrangement and what it means politically and economically.

Another major policy reversal

The preliminary agreement is another major course correction on trade from the Trump administration.

While the stock market leaped up on news of progress in the talks, yields in the bond market also jumped, suggesting further financial uncertainty resulting from another substantial policy change from the Trump administration.

The triple-digit reduction in the overall tariff rate on China follows a series of similar about-faces. Moves on tariffs have played double duty as both economic policy and bartering chips in bilateral trade talks.

“What this agreement........

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