US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin plays down expectations that this week’s talks will resolve trade war
- Vice-Premier Liu He, who will lead the Chinese delegation, is scheduled to meet US President Donald Trump on Thursday
- Mnuchin sees prospects for ‘significant progress’ but underlines complexity of issues
US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Monday played down hopes that Washington and Beijing would strike a deal during negotiations this week to end the trade war.
Suggesting that there could be further discussions after high-level talks scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday in Washington, Mnuchin said: “We do have another 30 days after this, so my expectation is that we’ll make significant progress at these meetings, but I would just emphasise these are complicated issues.”
Watch: Clock is ticking on 90-day truce
Both sides have agreed on a March 1 deadline for the current round of negotiations, after which the United States could increase tariffs on US$200 billion of Chinese imports if a deal is not reached.
Mnuchin said he and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer were “looking forward” to this week’s negotiations, which will be led on the Chinese side by Vice-Premier Liu He.
At the top of the agenda, Mnuchin said, were issues of forced joint ventures, in which US firms are coerced into handing over technology in return for market access, enforcement of any brokered agreements and IP protection.