Donald Trump says he may wait till after 2020 election to finish phase two of US-China trade deal
- President says negotiations to begin ‘right away’, but will ‘take a little time’
- Remarks come just days before Beijing’s trade envoy is due in Washington to sign phase one pact, marking pause in trade war
Negotiations for the second phase of a pending trade deal with China will begin promptly but the outcome may wait until after this year’s elections, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday.
Trump’s remarks come just days before Beijing’s trade envoy is due in Washington to sign a phase one agreement, marking a pause in the two sides’ nearly two-year trade war.
The US leader also openly cast doubt on whether American farmers would be able to supply China with the massive increases in agricultural exports expected to be part of the deal.
“We’ll start right away negotiating phase two. It will take a little time,” Trump told reporters.
“I think I might want to wait to finish it until after the election because I think we can make a little bit better deal, maybe a lot better deal.”
After a grand bargain proved elusive last year, the two sides agreed in December to a partial deal addressing only some of Washington’s grievances about Chinese trade practices.