The United States and China have temporarily agreed to slash reciprocal tariffs in a deal that surpassed expectations. 

The world's two biggest economies seek to end a damaging trade war that has stoked fears of recession and roiled financial markets.

The US will cut extra tariffs imposed on Chinese imports in April this year to 30 per cent from 145 per cent, and Chinese duties on US imports will fall to 10 per cent from 125 per cent, the two countries said on Monday. 

The new measures are effective for 90 days.

The dollar rose against other major currencies, and stock markets lifted following the news. This helped allay concerns about a downturn triggered last month by US President Donald Trump's escalation of tariff measures to narrow the US trade deficit. 

"Both countries represented their national interest very well," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after talks with Chinese officials in Geneva.

"We both have an interest in balanced trade; the US will continue moving towards that."

Bessent spoke alongside US trade representative Jamieson Greer after the weekend talks in Switzerland, in which both sides had hailed progress on narrowing differences.

"The consensus from both delegations this weekend is that neither side wants a decoupling," Bessent said. 

"And what had occurred with these very high tariffs ... was the equivalent of an embargo, and neither side wants that. We do want trade."

The Geneva meetings were the first face-to-face interactions between senior US and Chinese economic officials since Trump returned to power and launched a global tariff blitz, imposing particularly hefty duties on China.

With AAP.