New round of US-China trade talks begins in Washington with eye toward reaching framework for final deal
- Beijing is expected to announce a large purchase of US agricultural and energy products, which will be incorporated into the overall agreement
- Key structural issues yet to be resolved include forced technology transfers, cybertheft and market access
China and the United States began a fresh round of high-level talks in Washington on Thursday, amid reports of progress in their bid to nail down a meaningful deal ahead of the deadline for an agreement to end their trade war.
Time is running short toward March 1 when the US has threatened to raise tariffs on US$200 billion of Chinese products from 10 per cent to 25 per cent.
On Tuesday, however, US President Donald Trump suggested that he might extend the March 1 deadline, saying the talks were going “very well” and “the date is not a magical date”.
Working-level negotiations began on Tuesday, with cabinet and ministry officials joining the talks for two days beginning on Thursday. The previous round of negotiations took place last week in Beijing.
In Washington, the two sides are expected to outline a memorandum of understanding on challenging structural issues including forced technology transfers, cybertheft, market access and currency. China is also expected to announce a large purchase of US agricultural and energy products, which will be incorporated into the memorandum.