Signs of hope as Trump says US-China trade talks back on

BIARRITZ, France — There were signs of a thaw in trade-war tensions between China and the US on Monday as President Donald Trump said delegations would “very shortly” resume talks and Beijing’s top negotiator called for “calm”.

The two sides have been embroiled in a bruising year-long dispute that has seen tariffs slapped on billions of dollars worth of goods in two-way trade, with the row escalating over the weekend.

But just three days after the announcement of further mutual tariff hikes, Trump told reporters at the G-7 summit in France’s Biarritz that there had been two “very, very good” phone calls from “high-level” Chinese officials.

“China called last night... said let’s get back to the table. So we’ll be getting back to the table,” he said on Monday, adding that “they want to make a deal”.

He later said talks with China were “more meaningful than at any time” because the United States was doing well while China was “losing millions of jobs”.

Trump’s comments followed moves by China’s most powerful trade negotiator, Vice Premier Liu He, to take the edge off the soaring tensions.

“We are willing to solve the problem through consultation and cooperation with a calm attitude,” said Liu, according to a report by Chinese news outlet Caixin.

“We firmly oppose the escalation of the trade war,” he said, speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2019 Smart China Expo in the south-western city of Chongqing.

Trump later said “calm” was “very good word to use. It’s not a word I use often”.

The US president also insisted the calls were at “the highest levels”.

“The vice premier is low level? I don’t think so,” he said, seemingly referring to Liu.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin travelled to Shanghai in July for a round of trade talks, where discussions were described as “constructive” but ended with no announcements.

Monday’s detente came after Trump increased tariffs on more than half-a-trillion dollars worth of imports in a new round of punitive measures that are roiling global markets.

The US announcement on Friday followed an earlier surprise notification from Beijing that it would introduce fresh tariffs on US goods worth $75 billion.

Some of these measures are due to take effect on September 1, with the rest to follow over the coming months.