China and the U.S. wrapped up three days of trade negotiations in Beijing on Wednesday, one day later than scheduled, and the U.S. delegation sounded upbeat about the talks. It has been "good few days," U.S. Under Secretary of Agriculture Ted McKinney told reporters. The talks "went just fine," he added. "It's been a good one for us." President Trump tweeted late Tuesday night that "talks with China are going very well!" China's Foreign Ministry said only that "the two sides were indeed very serious in conducting the consultations," and a formal statement was forthcoming.
China and the U.S. are racing to reach a deal before a March 2 deadline set by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in December. This was the first face-to-face negotiations between China and the U.S. since that agreement, and if no deal is reached, Trump says he will raise tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports to 25 percent, from 10 percent. Analysts are skeptical that the two sides can reach a deal addressing America's concerns about Chinese structural trade barriers and investment regulations before the March 2 deadline.
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