US-China trade negotiations begin

United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday confirmed that negotiations with China over halting the escalating trade tensions between the two countries are underway.

In a series of tweets, Trump stated that United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will be working closely with White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow, United States Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, Economist Peter Navarro and the United States Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to see whether a "REAL" deal with China is possible.

Confirming that he will "happily sign" the deal if it is "fair", Trump asserted that he is a "Tariff Man", adding that he will make China pay for the privilege of raiding American wealth if an agreement is not reached upon by the two countries.

Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping had on December 1 agreed to a temporary truce during their dinner held on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina.

While Trump agreed to not raise the current 10 per cent tariffs on the USD 200 billion worth of Chinese goods to 25 per cent "at this time", CNN quoted White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders as saying that China agreed to purchase "very substantial" amounts of agriculture, energy, and other goods in order to restore trade balances.

Additionally, China agreed to "reduce and remove" tariffs on US-made cars, which currently stand at 40 per cent and reclassify 'fentanyl' as a 'controlled substance', with the White House terming the latter a "wonderful humanitarian gesture".