On December 12, 2019, Adam Behsudi writes on Politico:
President Donald Trump. | Evan Vucci/AP Photo
President Donald Trump has signed off on a mini-trade deal with China, two people familiar with the negotiations said on Thursday, marking another trade victory he can tout as he faces impeachment led by House Democrats.
The tentative agreement, which Trump refers to as “phase one” deal, codifies what was agreed to in principle in October. It will require China to significantly increase its purchases of U.S. agricultural goods, open its financial services sector and enact new intellectual property protections.
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In exchange, Trump will cancel a 15 percent tariff that was scheduled for Sunday, people briefed on the matter said. The president is also expected to reduce duty rates already in place on about $250 billion worth of goods, including many consumer items such as footwear, clothing and flat panel TVs.
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The move would add to another 2020 campaign-boosting trade accomplishment Trump achieved this week: an agreement with House Democrats on a new deal to replace the North American American Free Trade Agreement. Any such announcement would also cap a week of other political wins, ranging from House passage of a defense spending bill that included creation of the Space Force and an executive order to combat anti-Semitism.
Three people briefed on the talks said Trump was partially swayed to close a deal by a Chinese offer to purchase $200 billion worth of U.S. goods and services over a period of two years. That includes a previous demand to boost imports of U.S. farm goods to between $40 billion and $50 billion within the same period. The U.S. had made that demand as far back as May 2018.
China would also agree to buy more U.S. energy and manufactured products as well as services. The U.S. exported almost $130 billion worth of goods to China in 2017 before Beijing retaliated against U.S. imports. U.S. goods exports to China through October of this year have dropped more than 30 percent to nearly $88 billion.
Trump has previously said this deal would cover 60 percent of the outstanding issues the U.S. has with China, though details on what that means have been scant. It also may be difficult for the president to achieve any additional concessions from China in the coming months as his focus shifts to his 2020 reelection campaign.
The White House and U.S. Trade Representative’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump telegraphed on Thursday morning that a mini deal with China was coming, a move that boosted the stock market. He tweeted that the administration is getting “VERY close to a BIG DEAL with China. They want it, and so do we!”
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/12/us-and-china-reach-partial-trade-deal-084028
