Trump 'confident' about getting a trade deal with China
President Donald Trump said Friday he will not agree to a pact with China to resolve the months-long trade war unless it is a "very good deal." The economic superpowers have been locked in a trade battle since last summer, striking out with steep tariffs on more than $360 billion in two-way trade, which is beginning to sap economic growth and business confidence. "I am confident but... if this isn't a great deal, I won't make a deal," Trump told reporters as he departed the White House to visit tornado-damaged Alabama. But he added, "We will do very well either way, with or without a deal."
- World
- Reuters
- Published Date: 06:37 | 08 March 2019
- Modified Date: 06:39 | 08 March 2019
President Donald Trump on Friday said he is confident the United States can forge a trade deal with China, but added that he thinks his country would do very well with or without an agreement with the world's second-largest economy.
Asked if he was still confident he could get a deal with China: "Sure, I'm confident, but if we don't make a very good deal for our country, I wouldn't make a deal," Trump said.
Asked about a report that China was not positive about a trade deal and that a meeting with President Xi Jinping might not happen, Trump said "I haven't heard that. I think we're doing well ... We'll do very well either way, with or without a deal."
Speaking on Bloomberg TV, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the two countries could meet soon to continue hammering out a deal.
"It could go into April ... We made a lot of agreements here in Washington two weeks ago ... Now it has to go back and clear the top level of President Xi and the politburo in Beijing ... That's the key – not the timing, not even the place – we have to get it right so it's in America's interest," Kudlow said.
China's exports tumbled the most in three years in February while imports fell for a third straight month, pointing to a further slowdown in the economy and stirring talk of a "trade recession", despite a spate of support measures.
The increasingly weak China data comes amid months of intense negotiations between Washington and Beijing aimed at ending their trade dispute. On Wednesday, the U.S. reported its goods trade deficit with China surged to an all-time high last year, underlining one of the key sticking points.
Chinese shares fell more than 4 percent on Friday after the data showed exports contracting, pushing global equities to three-week troughs.