President Donald Trump may meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping next month, rising hopes that the trade war between the nations may come to a resolution.
“It looks like there will be a meeting in Buenos Aires at the G-20,” Trump’s top economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, said in an interview with CNBC Friday. “We are looking at it. The Chinese are looking at it. Preparations are being made. I can’t say 100% certainty, but there is no question everybody is looking at it.”
The trade war mounted further in late September, when Trump added tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods, prompting China to retaliate with $60 billion more in tariffs on their part.
The ongoing rise in duties has so far hurt actors in the meat and auto industries, as well as stores that that rely on Chinese imports, like Dollar Tree. According to the Associated Press, the recent volatility in the stocks is also in part due to the uncertainty with trade.
Kudlow noted Friday that China’s negotiation offers have thus far been “rather unsatisfactory,” but “maybe talks between the two heads of state will bear fruit.”
According to the Washington Post, Xi is expected to ask Trump to defer or cancel plans for further tariffs, moves that the White House sees as necessary to the elimination of policies it views as discriminatory.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration continues to criticize China for stealing trade secrets and forcing the transfer of technology. The president has also repeatedly vowed to reduce the U.S. trade deficit with China, which had risen to $568 billion by the end of 2017, according to Bloomberg reports.
