US, China make progress on trade, US representative’s office says
Review of the US-China phase one trade deal had been scheduled for August 15 but was postponed by US President Trump.
Top United States and Chinese officials, who spoke by phone, see progress on resolving issues over the phase one trade deal reached in January and both sides are committed to the success of the agreement, the US Trade Representative’s Office said.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He in a “regularly scheduled call” on Monday, USTR said in a statement.
“The parties addressed steps that China has taken to effectuate structural changes called for by the agreement that will ensure greater protection for intellectual property rights, remove impediments to American companies in the areas of financial services and agriculture, and eliminate forced technology transfer,” the statement said.
“The parties also discussed the significant increases in purchases of US products by China as well as future actions needed to implement the agreement,” it said.
“Both sides see progress and are committed to taking the steps necessary to ensure the success of the agreement,” USTR said.
Anger at China
The phone call was originally envisioned for August 15, the six-month anniversary of the trade deal’s launch. US President Donald Trump, who has frequently expressed anger at China about the coronavirus pandemic, said last week he had postponed talks with China because “I don’t want to deal with them now.”
China agreed with the US to continue pushing forward the implementation of the deal, China’s commerce ministry said in a statement. The two sides had constructive talks on the agreement and strengthening macroeconomic policy coordination, the ministry added.
China’s purchases of US goods are running well behind the pace needed to meet a first-year increase of $77bn specified in the deal, according to official data. But China has increased the pace of farm product purchases in recent weeks.
As his re-election campaign ramps up, Trump has turned to tougher talk and actions against China, including sanctions for China’s Hong Kong security crackdown and the forced sale of Chinese-owned short video platform TikTok.