China and the United States have agreed to remove additional tariffs in phases once their leaders sign an interim deal towards ending a costly trade war, with both sides still working to wrap up the agreement, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday.
Ministry spokesman Gao Feng said China and the U.S. had extensive and serious discussions over the past two weeks to try to end their trade war, and the agreement would help stabilize the world economy.
“In the past two weeks, top negotiators have had serious and constructive discussions on resolving issues of core concern. Both sides agreed to remove the additional tariffs imposed in phases as progress is made on the agreement,” Gao said.
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“If China and the U.S. reach a phase one deal, both sides should roll back existing additional tariffs in the same proportion simultaneously.”
He said that both sides could decide how much would be scrapped in the first phase based on the content of the agreement.
“Economic and trade teams from both sides have been in constant communication. We hope to resolve our issues of core concern in an equal and mutually respectful manner,” he said.
But Gao said he had no information about where or when an agreement would be signed.
Adding momentum for the trade talks, the General Administration of Customs and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said they were considering removing restrictions on imports of U.S. poultry.
Stocks rallied on Thursday, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbing 0.6 percent. European shares and US stock futures also rose and the yuan strengthened to a three-month high.
Although both the US and China have tried to send positive signals, it is unlikely that the world’s two biggest economies will be able to sign the interim deal this month — as some had hoped.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Greece and Brazil November 10 -15, but so far his itinerary does not appear to include a stop in the U.S. There is also no indication of any meeting between Xi and U.S. President Donald Trump during the trip.
Xi will attend an emerging markets summit in Brazil and hold talks in Greece about a “development regarding the [Chinese-owned] Port of Piraeus,” according to vice foreign minister Qin Gang.
“Besides the Port of Piraeus, the two sides will also talk about how to better build the Belt and Road Initiative,” Qin said.
Source: China and U.S. ‘agree to phased rollback’ of extra trade war tariffs
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