Mnuchin: U.S., China 'getting close to the final round' in trade talks


Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said on Saturday that the United States and China are progressing in trade talks.
The two sides are reportedly "getting close to the final round of concluding issues." Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will reportedly have two telephone calls with their Chinese counterparts this week. He also said that the potential agreement would go "way beyond" any previous efforts to open China's markets to U.S. companies and would also limit China's ability to manipulate its currency.
Per The Wall Street Journal, Mnuchin told reporters that the two sides have agreed the deal will have "real enforcement on both sides." Each country will have a detailed enforcement office with "significant resources."
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While Mnuchin was reportedly hopeful, he did also express caution. "We are making progress," Mnuchin said. "I want to be careful. This is not a public negotiation ... this is a very, very detailed agreement covering issues that have never been dealt with before." The treasury secretary specifically said he would not go into details about the role tariffs might play in the negotiations.
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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