WASHINGTON (TNND) — President Donald Trump's economic team emerged Monday evening from more than six hours of talks with their Chinese counterparts in neutral London, signaling optimism to reporters, but the administration's hope for a quick fix to derailed trade relations did not pan out. The delegations are slated to meet for a second day of talks on Tuesday.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters the meeting was "good." Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called them "fruitful."

The Chinese delegation was led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng. According to a spokesperson, he is scheduled to be in the United Kingdom through Friday. There is no scheduled end date to these talks.

During a television interview Monday morning, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said, “I expect it to be a short meeting with a big, strong handshake and we’ll see, but that’s what we’re expecting.”

This second round of talks between the U.S. and China was spurred after Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke by phone last week to address an unravelling temporary agreement struck in Geneva the month prior.

"We had a very good talk and we've straightened out any complexity. It's very complex stuff," Trump told reporters after the call.

The president was referring to China's alleged prolonged release of their trove of rare earth minerals and magnets to the U.S. market.

“This was a very significant sticking point because China controls, as you know, something like 90% of the rare earths and the magnets and if they’re slow-rolling sending those to the U.S. because of some licensing deal that they set up, then it could potentially disrupt production for you know, some U.S. companies that rely on those things," Hassett said.

China simultaneously accused the U.S. of violating the terms of the agreement, pointing to its export controls on semiconductors and a new State Department policy to “aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students."

Unlike the Geneva talks, Lutnick joined the talks in London alongside Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, which some interpreted as a sign the administration was open to easing those export controls. Hassett signaled this was a possibility if China opened up access to its rare earths.

Hassett noted the White House trade team has had to dedicate the bulk of its time and resources to addressing relations with China. He said once things are back on track, India is at the top of their list of trading partners with which they hope to strike a deal before the president's "Liberation Day" tariff pause expires in one month.