The United States and China have agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the retaliatory tariffs imposed since early April, giving negotiators a window to seek a broader settlement after months of escalating duties that had reached as high as 145 percent on some goods. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the pause is already drawing “very good proposals” from trading partners and indicated Washington will prioritise regional agreements. He warned that countries deemed not to be negotiating in good faith will face a reinstatement of the steep “Liberation Day” tariffs announced on 2 April. Bessent also confirmed a weekend call with Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon, saying the retailer plans to absorb part of the import levies. Walmart has nevertheless cautioned that some departments could see double-digit price increases, and analysts expect other chains to outline similar pressures this week. Late Friday, Moody’s Ratings cut the U.S. sovereign credit grade to Aa1 from Aaa, citing persistent fiscal deficits. Bessent dismissed the downgrade as a “lagging indicator,” noting the administration inherited a deficit equal to 6.7 percent of GDP and pledging to curb spending while expanding growth to stabilise debt ratios. The dual headlines rattled markets. S&P 500 futures fell about 0.7 percent and Nasdaq 100 contracts nearly 1 percent as trading reopened Sunday night, while gold climbed roughly 1 percent and bitcoin traded near $105,000. The dollar weakened and Asian equity benchmarks—including the Nikkei 225 and Kospi—opened lower.