US, China 'close to finalising' trade deal after deadlock: Reports

After a prolonged trade war, the United States and China are reportedly close to finalising on some sections of the trade agreement, the office of the US Trade Representative's (USTR) said on October 25. The USTR, in a statement, said high-level telephone discussions were held on Friday, October 25, but didn’t specify the areas where progress has been made. It added that the discussions will continue at the deputy level and the principals will have another call in future. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce, in a separate statement, confirmed that "technical consultations" on some parts of a trade agreement were finished.

Read: Asian Markets Rise On China-US Trade Hopes, Pound Edges Down

Trump upbeat about the mini-deal

US President Donald Trump had announced a mini deal earlier this month and was confident on finalising the agreement. Trump later also hinted on the progress of the agreement saying they will be able to seal a deal on phase one. He said that “good things” were happening at the trade talk meeting.

Read: Donald Trump Says 'phase 1' China Trade Pact On Track For November

Trump accused China of unfair trade practices

Trump has repeatedly blamed China for unfair trade practices and he didn’t miss the opportunity at the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Trump derided that the theory behind the admission of China in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has been proven completely wrong. Trump had also blamed China for theft of intellectual property and trade secrets on a "grand scale".

“It has embraced an economic model, dependent on massive market barriers, heavy state subsidies, currency manipulation, product dumping, forced technology transfers and the theft of the intellectual property and also trades secrets on a grand scale,” he said at the UNGA. "As far as America is concerned, those days are over," he added.

Read: Donald Trump Accuses China Over Unfair Trade Practices At UNGA

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(With Inputs from Agencies)