Phase One of US-China Deal 'Ahead of Schedule,' Trump Says

President Donald Trump said the U.S. is “ahead of schedule” in signing the first phase of a U.S.-China trade deal.

Speaking with reporters Oct. 28, Trump said the first phase will cover a “big portion” of the deal. “So we’re about, I would say, a little bit ahead of schedule, maybe a lot ahead of schedule,” Trump said. “Probably, we’ll sign it.”

Trump said the deal will “take care of the farmers” -- alluding to potential Chinese purchases of U.S. agricultural products -- and address “banking needs.”

China's Ministry of Commerce made similar comments, saying the first phase is “basically completed,” according to an unofficial translation of an Oct 26 press release. The comments came after a phone call between U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He. In an Oct. 25 statement, the USTR said the two countries made “headway on specific issues and the two sides are close to finalizing some sections of the agreement.”

China’s Commerce Ministry said the deal includes U.S. imports of “Chinese-made cooked poultry and squid products” and said China will remove its ban on U.S. poultry. “The two sides agreed to properly resolve their core concerns and confirmed that the technical consultations on some of the texts were basically completed,” the ministry said.

The two sides are planning another call in the “near future,” both countries said. The U.S. and China originally agreed to the deal’s first phase on Oct. 11 (see 1910110038).