China’s commerce ministry has said its trade representatives will fly to DC in early October to resume stalled face-to-face trade talks with the US, news that rallied Asia’s stock markets overnight.
The Shanghai Composite Index grew as much as 2 per cent, jumping above 3, 000 points for the first time in two months, while
Japan’s Nikkei climbed 2.3 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 1 per cent,according to CNN Business.
The agreement – intended to restore peace following Trump’s escalating tariff war, which is beginning to show signs of damaging US agriculture and manufacturing – was hammered out by the country vice premier and chief trade negotiatorLiu Hein conversation with US trade representativeRobert Lighthizerand treasury secretarySteven Mnuchin.
“They agreed to hold meetings at the ministerial level in Washington in the coming weeks, “a Lighthizer spokesperson. “In advance of these discussions, deputy-level meetings will take place in mid-September to lay the ground work for meaningful progress.”
“Any sliver of optimism on the trade war front will be viewed in a very positive light, “said Stephen Innes, an Asia Pacific market strategist for AxiTrader. “Surely both parties can’t be happy to move forward with their scorched earth policy.”
Despite Trump’s respectful recent remarks aboutXi Jinping, both sides still seem a long way from the friendly terms they were on last April, when they were on the verge of agreeing a comprehensive new trade deal.
If no breakthrough is reached in the new negotiations, further escalation of the trade war is already scheduled.
On 1 October, the $ 250 bn (£ 203 bn) of Chinese goods that have already been subject to 25 per cent levies will see those tariffs rise to 30 per cent, further straining both economies. In mid-December, a new batch of Chinese imports, worth $ 156 bn (£ 127 bn), will be hit by 15 per cent tariffs.
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