Larry Kudlow plays up prospect ‘a deal can be made’ on trade between Trump and Xi
- The White House economic adviser walks back US President’s comments that it is ‘highly unlikely’ tariffs will be eased in trade war
- A sense of urgency grows about the need to resolve the stand-off ahead of talks this week at the G20 meeting in Argentina
US President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser Larry Kudlow sought on Tuesday to counter pessimism about whether Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will be able to strike a deal at the G20 summit to conclude the nations’ months-long trade war.
On Monday, Trump said he did not expect to de-escalate a scheduled hike in tariffs his administration has imposed on Chinese imports in the new year. Kudlow, though, tried to walk that position back, saying the president believed “there’s a good possibility that a deal can be made”.
“And he is open to that,” Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, added.
Confirming the South China Morning Post’s reports that Trump and Xi would be meeting over dinner, Kudlow said at Tuesday’s White House press briefing that the two leaders would be joined by trade representatives from both sides.
“If China will come to the table – or in this case the dinner table – with some new ideas, and some new attitudes, and some new cooperation, as [President Trump] said, there’s a good possibility they could make a deal,” he said.