US and China hold ‘constructive’ trade talks after delay

LONDON - The United States and China have held talks over their so-called “phase-one” trade deal after the discussion was delayed earlier this month.

Both sides saw progress and are committed to the agreement, the US Trade Representative said. Negotiations had been expected to take place on August 15 but were postponed by President Donald Trump. In an election campaign speech earlier this month, Trump said: “I don’t want to talk to China right now.” The statement from the US Trade Representative also said the two parties had discussed intellectual property rights and other issues that have proved sticking points in negotiations over a phase-two deal. “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 announcements came after US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke to Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on Monday evening Washington time. It marks a rare sign of co-operation between the world’s two largest economies, as their relationship has become increasingly strained this year over a wide range of issues including data security, the coronavirus pandemic and Hong Kong. In recent weeks Trump has increased the pressure on Chinese technology firms with executive orders to ban the short video-sharing app TikTok and social media platform WeChat. This week TikTok’s owner ByteDance launched a legal challenge against the US president’s decision, arguing that the move was motivated by politics, not national security. – BBC.