Trade talks to continue in September in US

Bloomberg

China and the US plan to meet again in September to extend trade talks, as the latest round of negotiations in Shanghai ended with signs the sides discussed Chinese purchases of American farm products — a key demand of President Donald Trump.
US delegates including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer wrapped up talks with their Chinese counterparts including Vice Premier Liu He at the Xijiao State Guest Hotel, according to a report.
The negotiators from Beijing and Washington discussed China’s imports of agriculture products from the US based on its needs, state-run news agency Xinhua reported, adding that the September gathering will include high-level officials. The countries have alternated hosting a series of meetings in their more than year-long trade war.
The latest round of talks took place against a backdrop of a fresh outburst by Trump, who, as delegates gathered, let fly at China’s perceived unwillingness to buy American agricultural products and said it continues to “rip off” the US.
S&P 500 futures stayed higher after the September meeting was announced.
Relations between the delegates appeared cordial, according to the pool report. Xinhua said it was a candid, efficient and constructive exchange on major economic and trade issues.
China’s trade minister Zhong Shan played a more prominent role in the discussions than in previous rounds.
His greater involvement had caused concerns among some US delegates as he is perceived as tougher negotiator.
The Americans arrived in Shanghai and attended a dinner at the Fairmont Peace Hotel. A person familiar with the event described the atmosphere at the dinner as being all about rapport building without substance on negotiations.
The People’s Daily, mouthpiece of the Communist Party, responded to Trump with a commentary saying that China has no motive to “rip off” the US and has never done so, and China won’t make concessions against its principles on trade.
China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a briefing in Beijing that it doesn’t make any sense for the US to exercise a maximum-pressure campaign.
“Only when the US shows enough sincerity and good faith can we achieve progress in the trade talks,” she said.

China Factories
Expectations for a breakthrough in the trade talks have been low. The two sides are further apart than they were three months ago, when negotiations broke down and each side blamed the other for derailing attempts to reach a deal. China is pushing for compromise in the talks, with state media underlining this week that the US should meet it “halfway.”
Data showed the outlook for China’s manufacturing sector brightening slightly, though the sector is still contracting. The manufacturing purchasing managers’ index rose to 49.7 in July, led by better conditions for large companies. The below-50 reading still signals contraction, though is better than the median estimate of 49.6 in a survey of economists. The non-manufacturing gauge fell to 53.7.
China’s leadership announced priorities for economic policy in the second half of the year, pledging to tackle ongoing tensions over trade “effectively” while offering incremental additions to stimulus policies.

Tariffs or no tariffs, US corn may be expensive for China
Bloomberg

With or without retaliatory tariffs, Chinese companies will probably show little interest in buying US corn because the jump in Chicago benchmark futures since May has wiped out the price advantage over domestic supplies, according to Yigu Info Consulting Ltd.
Commercial firms are not expected to sign deals as “they have no profit from importing US corn,” said Feng Lichen, chief analyst at the consulting company. The government also has no interest in buying American corn for stockpiles following an increase in prices after heavy rains and flooding cut US planting to the slowest ever, according to Feng.
The US and China concluded their latest round of trade talks in Shanghai on Wednesday following a hiatus of almost three months, with little immediate evidence of progress. China has said it will continue to buy US farm products, including corn, and has waived retaliatory tariffs on some imports, but there are no signs of any significant new purchases.
The negotiations took place against the backdrop of a fresh twitter outburst by US President Donald Trump,
who let fly at China’s perceived unwillingness to buy American agricultural products and said it continues to “rip off” the US.