The Agreement for Trade Deal May Not be Ready in Time at APEC Summit, Says U.S. Official

U.S. President Donald Trump and the Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet at the sidelines of APEC summit next month in Chile, however, a U.S. administration official has recently stated that the agreement may not be completed in time on the meeting date.

“If it’s not signed in Chile, that doesn’t mean that it falls apart. It just means that it’s not ready,” the administration official said. “Our goal is to sign it in Chile. But sometimes texts aren’t ready. But good progress is being made and we expect to sign the agreement in Chile.”

The U.S. administration official cautioned that the text might not be completed in time.

 

The deal is what the U.S. has been trying to compromise with China along which is to cover the purchasing of U.S. agricultural goods, intellectual property protections, currency practices and increased access for U.S. companies to China’s financial services market.

Whether the deal could be signed at APEC summit or not, the U.S. officials asserted that the deal was in good progress while also noting that it would be fine if the deal failed to be signed at the APEC summit.