President Donald Trump reported “big progress” in trade talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, providing an optimistic start to what could be a make- or-break year for ties between the world’s two largest economies.
The two presidents spoke at length by telephone on Saturday, with each expressing satisfaction with trade talks initiated after their meeting earlier this month in Argentina. Trump said in a tweet that negotiations were “moving along very well” toward a comprehensive deal, while Chinese state media said Xi believed both sides wanted “stable progress.”
The call – coming just three days before the 40th anniversary of the US’ establishment of formal ties with China – underscored the stakes for talks. Trump’s efforts to challenge Beijing on trade over the past year have dredged up a wide range of grievances and fuelled concerns that the relationship is heading into a prolonged period of confrontation.
Xi said ties had reached a “vital stage” on the anniversary and the world expected the two sides to work together, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. His remarks were followed up by a Chinese foreign ministry statement saying that the relationship had “traversed a tortuous journey” to the milestone and were “standing at a new historical starting point.”
The two leaders spoke as a US trade delegation prepares to travel to Beijing for talks slated for the week of January 7, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing two people familiar with the matter. The exchanges suggest that months of market-rattling brinkmanship may be easing, and that the two leaders are following through on pledges made at their December 1 dinner meeting in Buenos Aires.
While China has recently taken steps that might help address US complaints about trade barriers and intellectual property theft, there was little to suggest that Xi was considering fundamental changes along the lines demanded by the Trump administration. China’s defiant response last month to US efforts to extradite Huawei Technologies Co executive Meng Wanzhou from Canada have highlighted deeper strategic suspicions between the two sides.
Negotiators have begun fleshing out a possible deal that includes ensuring greater access for foreign firms to China’s financial sector, but Trump may be overstating how close the countries are to agreement, the Wall Street Journal reported late Saturday, citing people familiar with the negotiations.
The US formally established ties with the People’s Republic of China on January 1, 1979, cementing a rapprochement that began seven years earlier with President Richard Nixon’s landmark visit to Beijing. Ties have endured several frosty periods, most notably when the US tried to isolate China for its violent crackdown on Tiananmen Square protesters in 1989.
It was unclear who initiated the call between Trump and Xi. The White House, which typically doesn’t release details of Trump’s calls with foreign leaders beyond what the president reveals himself, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
US stocks, beaten down recently by concerns about an escalating tariff war, got a boost from news of the upcoming talks in Beijing. The gathering will be the first face-to-face discussion between the two sides since Trump and Xi agreed to a 90-day truce in Buenos Aires.
Deputy US Trade Representative Jeffrey Gerrish will lead the delegation, which also will include Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs David Malpass, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, whom Trump named to be in charge of the China talks, wasn’t scheduled to join the delegation.
Xi said on Saturday that officials from both countries have been working actively and hopes the teams can meet each other halfway, Xinhua reported.
Beijing recently announced a third round of tariff cuts, saying it would lower import taxes on more than 700 goods from January 1 as part of its efforts to open up the economy and lower costs for domestic consumers.
Trump, meanwhile, has agreed to put on hold a scheduled increase in tariffs on some $200bn in annual imports from China while the negotiations take place. He’s pushing the Asian nation to reduce trade barriers and stop the alleged theft of intellectual property. Beijing so far has pledged to resume buying US soybeans and to at least temporarily lower retaliatory tariffs on US autos.
US President Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, China’s President, shake hands during a news conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on November 9, 2017. The two presidents spoke at length by telephone on Saturday, with each expressing satisfaction with trade talks initiated after their meeting earlier this month in Argentina.
