US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in an interview that all the exchanges with China right now are just “preparatory”. And the “big-event” is the meeting between Trump and Xi at the G-20 in Argentina on Nov 30/Dec 1. He added both leaders will certainly not get into “intimate details”. And, it’s going to be “big picture”. If things go well, the meeting will “set the framework for going forward”.
However, Ross also noted that the US is still planning, on Jan 1, to raise tariffs on USD 200B in Chinese imports from 10% to 25%. And “We certainly won’t have a full formal deal by January. Impossible.”
Separately, it’s reported that the document China sent to the US this week included 142 items regarding US requests on trade. The items are divided into three categories: issues for further negotiation, issues China is already working on, and issues that are non-negotiable. It’s believed that some items on the non-negotiable lists were unacceptable to Trump, while the US is skeptical on others due to China’s history of failing promises.
