U. S. and Chinese negotiators end two days of talks without reaching agreement.<\/b>
\nWASHINGTON \u2014 President Trump expects to meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to try to resolve a six-month trade standoff after U. S. and Chinese negotiators ended two days of talks Thursday without settling the toughest issues that divide the world\u2019s two biggest economies.
The White House said in a statement that the two sides had made progress but that \u201cmuch work remains to be done.\u201d
In the meantime, the administration said it would keep a \u201chard deadline\u201d of March 2, at which point it would escalate import taxes on $200 billion in Chinese goods if there was no deal.
\u201cBased on many months of negotiations, we had two very intense and very long days of discussions,\u201d said U. S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.
Lighthizer added: \u201cWe have much work to do if we\u2019re going to have an agreement. But we made substantial progress.\u201d
The U. S.-China trade hostilities have weakened both economies, shaken financial markets and clouded the outlook for global trade. Analysts have held out little hope the two countries can reach a comprehensive deal over the next month.
At the heart of the conflict is the U. S. demand that Beijing stop taking predatory actions \u2013 from intellectual theft to the forced handover of technology by U. S. companies \u2013 in a drive to become a global power in fields such as robotics and electric cars.
The Trump administration also complains that Beijing unfairly subsidizes its own tech companies.
China has denied that it deploys any such tactics.
Lighthizer, who has taken a hard line on Chinese trade practices, led the U. S. delegation. Vice Premier Liu He headed the Chinese side.
After the talks ended Thursday, Trump spoke glowingly of a Chinese commitment to buy more U. S. soybeans.
But he acknowledged that he and Xi would have to reach a final agreement on the far more contentious technology issues. And Trump said that might require more than one meeting with Xi.
\u201cThere are some points we don\u2019t agree to, but we will agree,\u201d the president told reporters. \u201cI think when Xi and I meet, every point will be agreed to.\u201d
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