Breakthrough in trade if Xi steps up: White House advisor

Larry Kudlow, the Director of the National Economic Council under US President Donald Trump, has indicated that there may be a breakthrough in trade talks with China but also added that Trump's Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping would have to "step up" for that.

"President Xi has an opportunity to change the tone and the substance of these talks. This is a big opportunity. President Trump has indicated he's open. Now we have to know if President Xi is open," he said.

Trump and Xi are slated to meet on Saturday which is their only scheduled meeting before US tariffs on around USD 200 billion in imports from the Asian country rise to 25 percent from January 1. Both the leaders will be meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina for a dinner where both their spouses may join them, according to CNN.

"This is a big deal. We're all going to try to do the best we can," the advisor added.

Washington and Beijing have been engaged in an escalating trade war from the past few months, with both nations slapping high tariffs on each other's goods and imports. This has led to straining of ties between the two nations.

The Trump administration has been slapping tariffs on China, claiming that the US was "being treated unfairly in trade" and accusing Beijing of "stealing intellectual property". China, on the other hand, chided the US for indulging in "trade bullying.