China and the United States are "very close" to an agreement on TikTok, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday in Madrid, where the two countries began a second day of trade talks.

"On the TikTok deal itself, we are very close to resolving the issue. There are a number of other issues that remain unresolved," Scott Bessent told reporters.

"If we don't reach an agreement on TikTok, it won't affect the overall relationship between the two countries. It remains very good," he added, explaining that he has "a lot of respect for [his] counterparts."

Trade negotiations between the world's two largest economies resumed Monday at the Spanish Foreign Ministry, a day after the opening of this new round of discussions aimed at resolving differences over trade and technology that have strained their relations, an AFP journalist noted.

The delegations are led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and could continue until Wednesday.

The agenda includes two of the thorniest issues in bilateral relations between the two countries: President Donald Trump's threat to impose steep tariffs on Chinese imports and Washington's demand that TikTok be sold to a non-Chinese owner by September 17 or face a ban in the United States.

Chinese suspicions over Nvidia chips

But in a sign that tensions have not eased between the two giants despite hopes of a TikTok deal, Beijing on Monday accused the American chip giant Nvidia of violating its anti-monopoly laws and announced a "thorough investigation."

"Following a preliminary investigation, it has been determined that NVIDIA Corporation violated the Anti-Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China," the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) said in a statement, without specifying what violations were involved.

The Chinese market regulator will therefore deepen the "preliminary investigation" it launched in December into Nvidia.

Nvidia's financial results released last month raised concerns about its operations in China, which are increasingly under scrutiny from Washington amid heightened trade and geopolitical tensions.

The announcement also comes after China launched investigations into the US semiconductor industry over the weekend.

Trade tensions between Beijing and Washington have been on a roll in 2025, with both countries repeatedly raising their respective tariffs.

Over the course of the year, these tariffs between the United States and China reached levels three times higher than normal on both sides, disrupting supply chains.

Since then, Washington and Beijing have reached an agreement aimed at defusing tensions, temporarily lowering tariffs to 30% for the United States and 10% for China.

In August, the two countries decided to postpone the entry into force of new tariff increases on each other's exports for 90 days, thus extending the trade truce until November 10.

China's Ministry of Commerce on Friday called on Washington to "work with China on the basis of mutual respect and equal consultation to resolve mutual concerns through dialogue and find a solution to the problem," according to a statement.

The meetings in Madrid could lay the groundwork for a possible summit between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping later this year.