SHANGHAI (Reuters) – U.S. and Chinese negotiators wrapped up a brief round of trade talks on Wednesday that Beijing described as “constructive”, including discussion of further purchases of American farm goods and an agreement to reconvene in September.
The first face-to-face trade talks since a ceasefire was agreed last month amounted to a working dinner on Tuesday at Shanghai’s historic Fairmont Peace Hotel and a half-day meeting on Wednesday, before U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin flew out.
“Both sides, according to the consensus reached by the two leaders in Osaka, had a candid, highly effective, constructive and deep exchange on major trade and economic issues of mutual interest,” China’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement shortly after the U.S. team left Shanghai.
The statement said negotiators discussed more Chinese purchases of agricultural products from the United States, which had become a bone of contention after U.S. President Donald Trump said China had not delivered on promised purchases.
The talks began amid low expectations, with Trump on Tuesday accusing Beijing on Twitter of stalling, and warning of a worse outcome for China if it continued to do so.
On Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that she was not aware of the latest developments during the talks, but that it was clear it was the United States that continued to “flip flop”.
[To read the original article, click here]