WASHINGTON: The White House has agreed to suspend some tariffs on Chinese goods and reduce others in return for Beijing’s pledge to hike purchases of US farm products in 2020, sources said on Thursday, taking a step towards de-escalating the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.
A sourced briefed on the status of bilateral negotiations said the US would suspend tariffs on US$160 bil (RM662.6 bil) in Chinese goods expected to go into effect on Dec 15 and roll back existing tariffs.
In return, Beijing would agree to buy US$50 bil in US agricultural goods in 2020, double what it bought in 2017, before the trade conflict started, two US-based sources briefed on the talks said.
The White House didn’t release any official statement, raising questions about whether the terms had been agreed by both sides.
Two people familiar with the negotiations had said earlier on Thursday that US negotiators were offering to cut existing tariffs on Chinese goods by as much as 50% as well as suspend the new tariffs scheduled to go into effect on Sunday in an attempt to secure a “Phase 1” deal first promised in October.
The US-China trade war has slowed global growth and dampened profits and investment for companies around the world. The US has announced US$28 bil in subsidies for American farmers affected by the dispute.
“If signed, this is an encouraging first phase that puts a floor under further deterioration of the bilateral relationship,” said US-China Business Council President Craig Allen. “But this is just the beginning. The issues facing the US and China are complex and multi-faceted. They are unlikely to all be resolved quickly.”
China bought US$24 bil in US farm products in 2017, according to US Department of Agriculture figures. – By Jeff Mason, Andrea Shalal and David Lawder, Reuters
