The high-level economic talks come as trade tensions flare between the world's two biggest economies following Beijing's announcement of tightened export controls on the critical rare earths industry -- sparking a fiery response from Trump.

The US leader swiftly threatened to impose an additional 100-percent tariff on imports from China, and to cancel expected talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in South Korea.

But Trump said in an interview with Fox News, released Friday, that he would meet Xi after all at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

On Friday, a senior Trump administration official told AFP that Bessent would speak to He by phone on Friday about ongoing trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing, ahead of the APEC gathering.

The official did not provide further details on the planned contents of Bessent and He's call.

Trade tensions between the United States and China have reignited this year as Trump slapped sweeping tariffs on US imports and both sides engaged in tit-for-tat retaliation.

At one point, tariffs on both sides escalated to triple-digit levels, effectively halting some trade as businesses waited for a resolution.

The two countries have since lowered their respective tariff levels but this truce remains shaky.

Bessent has accused China of seeking to hurt the world economy after Beijing announced its new export controls, and on Wednesday the US Treasury chief said he was speaking with allies to work out a response.

"We are not going to let a group of bureaucrats in Beijing try to manage the global supply chains," Bessent vowed at a press conference Wednesday.