Trump officials meet with Chinese Vice Premier to talk trade agreement

February 21, 2019

CBS News,

Members of President Trump’s economic team are continuing high level talks with Chinese officials in the hopes of reaching a trade agreement ahead of a deadline for U.S. tariff hikes. Mr. Trump has said the outcome of the talks will help decide whether he escalates a technology dispute by going ahead with a March 2 tariff hike on $200 billion of imports from China.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and White House trade adviser Peter Navarro are meeting Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and other officials on Thursday.

Both governments have expressed optimism, but they have given no details of their talks. Last week, Lighthizer told Chinese president, Xi Jinping, the two sides “made headway on very, very important and difficult issues.”