China says US trade talks were productive

11 Jan 19

China has said talks with the US this week “laid the foundations” to resolve the ongoing trade war.

Representatives from the world’s two largest economies met this week in Beijing to ease trade tension, after the two countries agreed not to impose new tariffs for 90 days in the margins of December’s G20 summit.

The negotiations were “extensive, deep and detailed”, China’s commerce ministry and had “established a foundation for the resolution of each other’s concerns”.

The US said in a statement that China pledged to purchase more American agricultural products and other goods but did not provide any specifics.

Last year, the two mega-economies imposed tariffs on more than $300bn worth of each other’s goods.

The two countries have not said when further negotiations will take place. But the Chinese statement said they had agreed to maintain “close contact”.

The talks concluded on Wednesday this week. The representatives were not expected to reach a final deal.

After a dinner at the G20 meeting at the beginning of December, Trump said he would delay new 25% tariffs on Chinese import by 90 days to allow time for negotiations.

In December, the Chinese Cabinet reportedly said it planned to cut taxes on US-made cars to 15% from the current 40%, undoing the import hike it introduced in the summer.

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