HONG KONG — China signaled on Friday that the United States could restore Hong Kong’s preferential trade status, saying Washington has agreed not to renew an executive order that revoked the city’s special trading arrangements. The Commerce Ministry said U.S. commitments on Hong Kong issues and other matters were discussed during last year’s bilateral talks in Madrid, and that Washington has informed Beijing it will end the President’s Executive Order on Hong Kong Normalization.
The ministry described the U.S. move as an important step toward fulfilling a consensus reached in those talks, and it said China appreciates the development. Officials cautioned that the full implications of the decision are not yet clear and noted that the White House directed media inquiries to the Treasury Department for comment on the executive-order lapse.
Separately, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control said the national emergency underpinning the order had expired and that individuals previously sanctioned under it were delisted. It added that people still sanctioned under another Hong Kong-related act have been moved to a different sanctions list. The statement also indicated that Hong Kong leader John Lee and his predecessor Carrie Lam were removed from the first list but added to the second.
The timing follows President Donald Trump’s meeting with Xi Jinping in Beijing, two months ago, which could soften tensions ahead of Xi’s expected visit to the United States later this year. Earlier in July, Trump signed the now-expired executive order in 2020 in response to Beijing’s imposition of a national security law in Hong Kong. The order was renewed most recently in July 2025.
China views Hong Kong’s national security framework as essential to stabilizing the city after widespread protests in 2019. Those events marked one of the Communist Party’s gravest domestic challenges since the 1997 handover from Britain. Hong Kong’s government welcomed the shift, saying it respects the positive trajectory in U.S. policy toward the city and underscoring that safeguarding prosperity and stability serves shared interests.
Looking ahead, officials reiterated calls for respect for China’s sovereignty and the rule of law in Hong Kong and for a return to normal economic and trade exchanges. While the exact scope of restored privileges remains under discussion, the development is viewed by market watchers as a potential bridge in U.S.-China economic ties.
