Asia

China Considers Cancelling Trade Talks with US – Reports

Sources say Chinese Vice Premier Liu He will likely cancel the trip he’d planned for himself and a 100-person delegation for the final round of talks with the US that could have resulted in a trade deal.
Sputnik

Liu He had previously planned to bring a large delegation to Washington on Wednesday to hash out a trade deal; however, two sources briefed on the talks told CNBC that the Chinese side may back out of this week’s negotiations.

That was pegged to Trump’s new threats, they said, which abandon a six-month truce after Beijing waffled on some previously discussed commitments. Chinese officials cancelled a trip in late September 2018 in similar circumstances.

READ MORE: Dow Jones Drops 400 Points After Trump Reveals New Tariffs for China

Trump said in a Sunday afternoon Twitter post that the current 10% tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods will rise to 25% on Friday. He also threatened to impose 25% levies on an additional $325 billion of Chinese goods “shortly.”

US-China Trade Deal ‘Possible’ by Next Friday – Reports
One of the sources said Trump’s decision to more than double the tariff rate on $200 billion of goods was meant to send a message to Liu to not come to the US with more “empty offers.”

Editor-in-chief of China's Global Times newspaper Hu Xijin also suggested that Liu He is "very unlikely" to go to the United States this week following US President Donald Trump's "threat" to hike tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods.

"Let Trump raise tariffs. Let's see when trade talks can resume," Hu Xijin said in a tweet.

Earlier, suggestions of a possible deal came from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney. Asked Tuesday about Mnuchin’s prior claim that the White House could announce an agreement with Beijing in the next two weeks, Mulvaney said, “I think that’s fair.”

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