Trump Says He Will Meet China’s Vice Premier Liu He on Friday

(Bloomberg) --

President Donald Trump said he will meet with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on Friday as the two nations negotiate a possible trade agreement in Washington.

“Big day of negotiations with China. They want to make a deal, but do I? I meet with the Vice Premier tomorrow at The White House,” Trump tweeted Thursday.

Chinese negotiators came to Washington for talks that started Thursday. While they’re still open to reaching a partial trade deal with the U.S., they haven’t been optimistic about securing a broad agreement that would end the trade war between the two nations, an official with direct knowledge of the talks said.

But China would accept a limited deal -- like those it has sought since 2017 -- as long as no more tariffs are imposed by Trump, including two rounds of higher duties set to take effect this month and in December, the official said.

In return, Beijing would offer non-core concessions like purchases of agricultural products without giving in on major sticking points, the official said, without offering further details.

To contact the reporter on this story: Joshua Gallu in Washington at jgallu@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, Larry Liebert

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