U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that he believes that excessively high tariffs between the U.S. and China will have to come down before trade negotiations can proceed but said President Donald Trump would not unilaterally cut tariffs on Chinese imports.

The possibility of trade negotiations appears to be part of efforts to seek an off-ramp from the recent spiral of tensions.

US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday warned that the US-China trade war was “not sustainable” and that the countries would have to de-escalate their dispute, in comments that buoyed financial markets hoping for a trade deal.