Top White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow expressed confidence on Sunday that the United States was close to reaching a trade agreement with China, pointing out, however, that a final deal depended on President Donald Trump.
“I think we’re making great progress,” he said during an interview with Fox News. “Across the board, the deal has to be good for the United States, and for our workers, and our farmers and our manufacturing. It’s got to be good. It’s got to be fair and reciprocal and it’s got to be enforceable.”
Kudlow further stressed that U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators made significant progress during the talks in Washington two weeks ago, adding that negotiators have remained in contact every day since then.
“I don’t want to predict, it’s up to the president and not to me, but I think the headway has been good,” Kudlow noted, according to The Hill.
When asked by Fox’s Chris Wallace if President Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping might sign a trade deal by the end of this month or the beginning of April, Kudlow said he was “positive” and “bullish” they would.
The world’s two largest economies had a March 1 deadline to strike a deal. Otherwise, the U.S. had threatened to impose millions of dollars’ worth of tariffs on Chinese imports, but President Trump said he would postpone the deadline due to “substantial progress” in negotiations.
Trade talks between the two countries have been going on for months, with negotiators trying to reach an agreement on trade, intellectual property theft and the criminalization of fentanyl shipment, among other issues.
Trump has said on multiple occasions that he needs to meet with Xi before the two sides sign off on a final agreement.
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