Chinese President Xi Jinping's expected April meeting may not push through, a source with knowledge about the situation revealed. It is believed that demands from the U.S. government could be causing the reported delay.
A second source told the South China Morning Post that the upcoming trade meeting might be postponed until sometime June due to contradicting stances between the Chinese and American governments. The U.S. is reportedly pushing for China to abide by its promises of purchasing more goods made by American manufacturers.
The source further indicated that Trump's administration is deliberating with Chinese officials on the significance of a measure that ensures China will live up to its part in the trade deal. If a deal is reached by the two leaders, the tariff dispute may finally come to an end.
Earlier in February, it was revealed that the supposed late March meeting between the two chiefs at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort had been postponed. U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad explained that the delay happened since the much-debated trade deal has not been finalized yet.
Despite the delay, it was reported that China's Vice Premier Liu He and U.S. Trade Rep. Robert Lighthizer made "concrete progress" during their phone conversation on Thursday. Details about the call were not revealed to the public, but the development ignited hopes for a deal to be reached soon.
Rep. Lightizer has been encouraging Trump to include a measure on the trade deal that states China should keep its promises. Beijing responded to the proposal and said the measure should be "two-way, fair and equal" amid fears of how the China-U.S. trade war will further affect businesses.
According to Breitbart, Trump has signaled positive hopes for a deal to be reached and to be done the right way and he is not trying to hasten the process. "I want the deal to be right," the former business mogul said on Wednesday.
The trade war kicked off after Trump slapped tariffs on Chinese goods mid-2018. China responded shortly with tariffs on American products. Trump and Xi then met in December to discuss the tariff dispute. And a 90-day tariff truce was agreed on.
The truce was supposed to have ended two weeks ago, but the U.S. president said he would delay increasing tariffs on China's produce. While the late March meeting will not happen as confirmed by American officials, most economic experts are still optimistic about a sure deal following the postponement of the March 1 deadline.
