Trump and Xi agree to trade war ceasefire between US and China

Donald Trump says relations with China are ‘back on track’ as he and President Xi seek to de-escalate trade tensions.

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping have agreed to a new ceasefire in a year-long trade war between the two nations.

That’s according to the Xinhua Chinese state-run news agency. It says the two countries have agreed to reboot stalled trade talks and that the US will hold off on threatened additional tariffs on Chinese goods.

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Mr Trump said earlier today that the countries were “right back on track”. He later spoke of the result of his talks with President Xi, confirming he’s holding off on new China tariffs for the ‘time being’. He added he expected trade talks to continue with China.

“We won’t be adding an additional tremendous amount of $350 billion left which could be taxed or could be tariffed. We’re not doing that, we are going to work with China on where we left off to see if we can make a deal,” Trump said.

“We will be continuing to negotiate.”

US officials had signalled that a restart in talks was the likely outcome of Mr Trump’s meeting with Xi. The two leaders previously agreed to a truce at their last meeting in December to allow trade negotiations to continue, but talks broke down last month.

Both leaders seek to de-escalate a prolonged trade war between the economic powerhouses despite doubts about either’s willingness to compromise.

US President Donald Trump during the G20 Summit in Osaka. Picture: AFP

China's President Xi Jinping waits for a meeting with US President Donald Trump. Picture: AFP

Taking place on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Japan, the meeting was the centrepiece of four days of diplomacy for Mr Trump, whose re-election chances have been put at risk by the trade war that has hurt American farmers and battered global markets.

Tensions rose in recent weeks after negotiations collapsed last month and the two sides levied intensifying eye-for-an-eye punishments.

At a subsequent meeting with Turkey’s president, Mr Trump said the sit-down with President Xi went “probably even better than expected.” “The negotiations are continuing,” he said.

Seated across a lengthy table flanked by top aides, both leaders struck a cautiously optimistic tone after they greeted each other and posed for photographs.

(L-R) Senior Adviser Jared Kushner, Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, President Donald Trump, acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, National Security Adviser John R. Bolton, and Ivanka Trump attend a bilateral meeting with China's President Xi Jinping. Picture: AP

“We’ve had an excellent relationship,” Mr Trump told Xi as the meeting opened, “but we want to do something that will even it up with respect to trade.” Xi, for his part, recounted the era of “ping-pong diplomacy” which helped jump- start US-China relations two generations ago. Since then, he said, “one basic fact remains unchanged: China and the United States both benefit from co-operation and lose in confrontation.” “Co-operation and dialogue are better than friction and confrontation,” he added.