President Donald Trump said Thursday that the U.S. and China are working to secure a new location for a signing ceremony of a partial trade deal. Trump added that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping will participate and that the site will be announced soon.
The two leaders were set to ink the so-called "phase one" trade agreement at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Chile next month. The summit, however, was canceled Wednesday due to civil unrest in Santiago, Chile's capital. Both China and the U.S. have since sought to quell lingering doubt and reassure skeptics that a deal is coming.
China's Ministry of Commerce said Thursday that negotiators "have maintained close contact and are making smooth progress," state media reported.
Earlier this month, Trump announced that negotiators had agreed upon a "phase one" deal, which included pacts on agricultural purchases, monetary policy, and intellectual property. Trump added Thursday that the partial agreement made up roughly 60 percent of a total deal.
Yet doubt was cast on the momentum Thursday after Bloomberg reported that Beijing remains wary of signing even a limited deal with the Trump administration. Citing anonymous sources, the report said that top officials have warned China "won't budge on the thorniest issues."
On Wednesday, however, China's Foreign Ministry said that trade talks will continue at a "fast pace" despite the canceled APEC.
"It is China's hope that the two sides can find a way to resolve the economic and trade issues on the basis of mutual respect, equality, and mutual benefit," said Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang.
China's Ministry of Commerce also said Thursday that the chief trade negotiators from the U.S. and China will speak by phone on Friday. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation.
The Tony Awards on Sunday lured 4.85 million viewers to CBS, its largest broadcast audience in six years. CBS says Monday that Nielsen data shows the telecast — hosted by “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo — scored a 38% increase over last year’s 3.53 million viewers. That’s the largest audience for the Tonys since 2019, when the telecast that year nabbed 5.4 million viewers and “Hadestown” was crowned best new musical. The latest version also had to compete with the second game of the NBA Finals, between the Thunder and Pacers,
After stumbling out of the starting gate in Big Tech’s pivotal race to capitalize on artificial intelligence, Apple tried to regain its footing Monday during a developers conference that focused mostly on incremental advances and cosmetic changes in its technology.
Six weeks before UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down outside a Manhattan hotel last December, Luigi Mangione mused about rebelling against “the deadly, greed fueled health insurance cartel” and expressed that killing the executive “conveys a greedy bastard that had it coming."
Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson once clashed on the court in the 2001 NBA Finals, but now the basketball legends are joining forces to revive the Reebok brand they helped make iconic.
Midea is voluntarily recalling about 1.7 million of its popular U and U+ Smart air conditioners because pooled water in the units may not drain fast enough, leading to mold growth.
