China's Ministry of Commerce said Saturday that China and the United States have achieved positive outcomes in economic and trade consultations.
The Chinese and U.S. heads of state had in-depth discussions on economic and trade issues in Beijing on Thursday, further charting the course and providing strategic guidance for the development of bilateral trade relations, said a spokesperson of the ministry.
President Xi Jinping said during his talks with U.S. President Donald Trump that the Chinese and U.S. economic and trade teams produced generally balanced and positive outcome on Wednesday, which is good news for the people of the two countries and the world. Xi called on the two sides to jointly sustain the good momentum that they have worked hard to create.
The spokesperson said the Wednesday's meeting, which took place in South Korea, saw the two sides engaging in candid, in-depth, and constructive exchanges and consultations on resolving economic and trade issues of mutual concern and further expanding practical cooperation.
Subsequently, the two sides had intensive consultations on the specific content of the outcomes, reaching positive consensus, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the preliminary results achieved by the two sides in the economic and trade field mainly include the following aspects:
First, the two sides will continue to implement the results of previous consultations and have reached positive common ground on related tariff arrangements.
Second, both sides agree to establish a Trade Council and an Investment Council to discuss their respective concerns in these areas. Tariff reductions on specific products will be discussed through the Trade Council, with an agreement in principle on reciprocal tariff reductions on products of equivalent scale that are of mutual concern.
Third, both sides will resolve or make substantial progress on resolving some non-tariff barriers and market access issues for some agricultural products. The United States will work to resolve China's long-term concerns regarding automatic detention of dairy and aquatic products, export of bonsai plants and the recognition of Shandong's avian influenza-free zone. China will also work to resolve the U.S. concerns related to beef facility registration and the export of poultry from certain U.S. states to China.
Fourth, the two sides agree to promote expanded two-way trade in areas including agricultural products, through reciprocal tariff reductions on a certain range of products.
Fifth, the two sides have reached relevant arrangements regarding Chinese purchases of aircraft from the U.S., as well as the U.S. assurances on aircraft engine and spare parts supplies to China.
The consultation teams will follow the direction set by the two heads of state to finalize the outcomes as soon as possible and work together to implement them, according to the spokesperson.
China, U.S. achieve positive outcomes in economic, trade consultations: ministry
China, U.S. achieve positive outcomes in economic, trade consultations: ministry
China, U.S. achieve positive outcomes in economic, trade consultations: ministry
For more than 1,000 years, Jingdezhen, the "porcelain capital" in east China's Jiangxi Province, has shaped how the world understands porcelain, with even discarded shards preserving a living tradition.
Weng Yanjun, president of the Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Institute, reflected on the scale and challenge behind Jingdezhen's historic creations.
"When I look at this gigantic dragon jar, I couldn't help going back to 600 years ago, when the emperor had this order to create something bigger than ever before. The failure rate of the dragon jar is so high. It could be nine out of 10. Even making failure products like this takes courage, takes techniques and takes commitment," said Weng.
Those failed attempts, once discarded, now preserve the evidence of how Jingdezhen pursued perfection.
For more than 1,000 years, Jingdezhen's porcelain industry has endured through the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties (960-1911). What has survived is not only its porcelain, but also a living heritage of raw materials, workshops, kilns and specialized craftsmanship.
Those firings produced masterpieces as well as failures, with the discarded pieces forming another kind of archive.
At the Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Institute, Weng told archaeology students that fragmented specimens sometimes provide more information than complete artifacts.
Weng leads the development of the world's first Ancient Ceramics Gene Bank, which extracts and catalogs the defining characteristics of each ceramic shard.
"For our institute alone, we have excavated more than 20 million pieces of shards for the past over 1,200 years. Among those shards, we do sorting, we do restoration, and we do scientific tests. And then we find, wow, a small shard can tell us much more information than even a whole piece," said Weng.
Using a standardized sample library and unified data framework, the project records each piece's shape, decoration, body material, glaze, color, firing marks and inscriptions, creating a valuable resource for authentication and research around the world.
"The whole city is a wonderful lab and space range makes Jingdezhen uniquely a wonderful example of how the handicraft ancient industry with porcelain as the focus survived even to today," Weng added.
Jingdezhen once helped establish benchmarks for how porcelain was made. Now, the gene bank is turning fragments into a language that can be read beyond the city. For French artist and researcher Yann Colleu, learning to read that language has also changed the way he creates.
"Since my childhood, my parents had these teapots, tea sets, plates and cups. I was very curious about the pattern, like the meaning, what was behind it? Actually when I discovered in Jingdezhen that it was a bat, because of 'fu' and 'fu' is fortune, but also you have the 'wufu,' like the five blessings. I was like a child with stars in the eyes, discovering the world for the first time," said Colleu, PhD candidate at Jingdezhen Ceramic University.
What once seemed abstract became part of Yann's own visual language. In his work, traditional Jingdezhen motifs and production scenes are reimagined through a contemporary, cross-cultural lens.
"Jingdezhen is a timeless city. The past, the present and even the future are tied together. This is one of illustration of 72 traditional steps developing during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The difference is, instead of using Chinese characters, I use foreigners. I want to use the past to talk about the present and even the future with Jingdezhen," said Colleu.
The Jingdezhen Handicraft Porcelain Industry Sites were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on Saturday. The inscription recognizes not just a single kiln or masterpiece, but an entire production system, from its archaeological remains and traditional craftsmanship to its industrial knowledge and global influence.
Porcelain shards preserve Jingdezhen’s timeless legacy
