Hong Kong (CNN Business) China is planning to exempt some US soybeans and pork products from tariffs, a move that could take some heat out of talks aimed at agreeing on a truce in the trade war.

The country's finance ministry said Friday that it would waive taxes levied on some imports once companies had applied for exemptions. It did not specify which, or how many, goods would be exempted.

China has extended an olive branch on this front before: in September, Beijing announced it would exclude some soybeans and pork products from its newest tariffs.

Trade in soybeans and pork has been hit hard as tensions have escalated between the world's two largest economies. Both products were among thousands of US goods hit by Chinese tariffs last July 2018 in response to the Trump administration's taxes on $34 billion of Chinese goods.

American soybean farmers have felt the pain. China was their biggest market before Beijing retaliated against US tariffs. In 2018, exports of soybeans to China fell to $3.1 billion, down from $12.2 billion the year before.