Signs of hope as Trump says US-China trade talks back on
BEIJING: There were signs of a thaw in frosty trade-war tensions between China and the US yesterday as President Donald Trump said delegations would ‘very shortly’ resume talks and Beijing’s top negotiator called for ‘calm’.
The two sides have been embroiled in a bruising yearlong dispute that has seen tariffs slapped on billions of dollars worth of goods in two-way trade, with the row escalating over the weekend.
But just three days after the announcement of further mutual tariff hikes, Trump told reporters at the G7 summit in France’s Biarritz he had taken two “very, very good” phone calls from Chinese officials.
“China called last night... said let’s get back to the table. So we’ll be getting back to the table,” he said yesterday, adding that ‘they want to make a deal’.
Trump’s comments followed moves by China’s most powerful trade negotiator, Vice Premier Liu He, to take the edge off the soaring tensions.
“We are willing to solve the problem through consultation and cooperation with a calm attitude,” said Liu, according to a report by Chinese news outlet Caixin.
“We firmly oppose the escalation of the trade war,” he said, speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2019 Smart China Expo in the southwestern city of Chongqing.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin travelled to Shanghai in July for a round of trade talks, where discussions were described as “constructive” but ended with no announcements.
Monday’s detente came after Trump increased tariffs on more than half-a-trillion dollars worth of imports in a new round of punitive measures that are roiling global markets.
The US announcement on Friday followed an earlier surprise notification from Beijing that it would introduce fresh tariffs on US goods worth US$75 billion.
Some of these measures are due to take effect on September 1, with the rest to follow over the coming months.
On Twitter, Trump also told American firms to start looking for an alternative to production in China – though he and his top aides later downplayed the idea.
Meanwhile Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he was not aware of the calls mentioned by Trump and angrily criticised the latest tariffs at a regular press briefing in Beijing.