China’s commitments in the “phase one” trade deal with the US were not changed during a lengthy translation process and would be released this week as the document is signed in Washington, US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin said on Sunday.
Mnuchin told Fox News Channel that the deal reached on Dec. 13 still calls for China to buy US$40 billion to US$50 billion worth of US agricultural products annually, as well as a total of US$200 billion of US goods over two years.
“It wasn’t changed in translation. I don’t know where that rumor started,” Mnuchin said on the Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo show.
“We have been going through a translation process that I think we said was really a technical issue, and the language will be released this week. So I think it is, the day of the signing, we will be releasing the English version,” Mnuchin said.
“And people can see: This is a very, very extensive agreement,” he added.
White House officials had said as late as Friday that the final Chinese text was not yet completed, even as invitations went out to more than 200 people for a Jan. 15 signing event at the White House.
Asked if he still expected China to purchase US$40 billion to US$50 billion in US farm products under the deal, Mnuchin said: “I do. Let me just say, it is US$200 billion of additional products across the board over the next two years, and, specifically in agriculture, US$40 billion to US$50 billion.”
Thus far, Beijing has not confirmed those purchase commitments, and recent government actions in the agriculture industry have raised questions over the US$40 billion to US$50 billion target cited repeatedly by officials in US President Donald Trump’s administration.
Chinese officials have been careful not to publicly discuss details of the phase one deal, because Washington has changed its position multiple times during negotiations, three Chinese officials with knowledge of the situation told reporters last week.
Signing of the trade deal tomorrow eases Trump’s 18-month trade dispute aimed at altering China’s trade and economic practices, but tariffs on about US$370 billion worth of Chinese imports per year are to be left in place.
Those are expected to be addressed in phase two negotiations, which Washington wants to launch this year, covering thornier issues untouched by the phase one deal, including Beijing’s heavy subsidies to Chinese state-owned enterprises, restrictions on digital trade and cybersecurity issues.
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