On Tuesday (February 19th), President Donald Trump said trade talks with China were difficult but "going very well" and noted that the March 1st deadline could be extended.
“I think the negotiations are going very well” Trump said on the sidelines of the White House. But he called the discussions “very complicated”.
After the third round of talks ended on Friday in Beijing without a deal / unsuccessfully, Trump proposed the March 1 deadline to reach an agreement.
If he does not extend the term, the United States is required to impose more than twice penalty import duties of 200 billion $.
"I can't say exactly when. The date is not magical because a lot of things happen," Trump told reporters.
This comment delighted investors and raised the share prices of US companies, raising confidence that the parties will avoid deepening the conflict.
On Friday, Trump reaffirmed his readiness to keep tariff increasing up to 25% from the current 10% on March 1st if Washington and Beijing are close to finalizing an agreement to deal with US allegations of unfair trade and theft of US technology.
U.S. officials have accused Beijing of seeking global industrial dominance through a number of unfair trade practices, including the alleged theft of U.S. intellectual property. Washington has called for a reduction in the US trade deficit with China.
The talks are aimed at "achieving the necessary structural changes in China that affect trade between the United States and China," the White House said on Monday.
On Tuesday, Bloomberg reported that the White House also expects China to keep its currency from depreciating to the US dollar, which will counteract the impact on tariffs.
Referring to those familiar with the negotiations, the report said the currency issue had been debated repeatedly and that the United States could use even higher rates to respond to the weakening of the renminbi.
"The two sides will also discuss China's promise to buy a significant amount of goods and services from the United States."
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said its delegation would be led by Deputy Prime Minister of China - Liu He, Beijing's top trade negotiator and a key aide to President Xi Jinping, who agreed to a truce with Trump over the December trade war in Buenos Aires.
The Ministry’s spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters on Tuesday that he is hoping that China and the United States would work together in order to complete the important consensus reached by the two Argentine heads of state, to take on the tasks and move together in the direction of a mutually beneficial agreement.
A meeting between President Donald Trump and Deputy Prime Minister Liu He is being held in Washington today (February 22nd) to reach a preliminary agreement between the economic powers. The meeting brings optimism for achieving sufficient progress in the negotiations.