US-China trade deal review postponed

The United States and China have delayed a review of their Phase 1 trade deal initially slated for Saturday, sources familiar with the plans told Reuters.

Scheduling conflicts and the need to allow time for more Chinese purchases of US exports ha been cited as reasons for the delay.

No new date for the initial six-month compliance review has been agreed, sources said.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He were expected to hold a videoconference on Saturday, the six-month anniversary of the trade deal’s Feb. 15 entry into force.

Market implications

US President Donald Trump on Friday repeated his view that the trade deal was “doing very well.” 

Investors can breathe a sigh of relief that the postponement did not reflect any substantive problem with the trade deal.

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