The partial trade deal between the U.S. and China will be signed this week, according to a report.
Liu He, China’s chief trade negotiator, is leading a delegation to the U.S. on Saturday (Jan. 4) with the directive to sign the phase one trade agreement, the South China Morning Post reports, citing a source briefed on the matter.
Fox Business reported that as part of the trade agreement, Beijing agreed to buy $200 billion of U.S. products over the next two years from the manufacturing, energy, agriculture and services sectors, in addition to protecting against intellectual property theft and technology transfer.
In return, the U.S. will reduce tariffs on Chinese goods. About $380 billion of Chinese goods will still be taxed in an effort to force Beijing to negotiate a broad trade agreement.
The skinny trade deal further deescalates the nearly two-year-long trade war that has hurt growth in the world’s two largest economies. China’s economy grew at a 6% rate in the third quarter, its weakest since record-keeping began in 1993. Economic expansion in the U.S. slowed to 2.1% in the July-to-September period, down from 3.1% at the beginning of the year.
For the full report, click here.
