Beijing: China, US holding ‘in-depth’ trade talks

China’s commerce ministry said Thursday that Beijing and the U.S. are in the midst of “in-depth” talks for a first-phase trade agreement that would hinge on canceling tariffs, according to Reuters.

“China has emphasized many times that the trade war began with additional tariffs and should end with the cancellation of additional tariffs,” ministry spokesman Gao Feng said at a regular briefing, the news service reported.

{mosads}The remarks come two days after President Trump said a trade deal with China was “close” and said he would hike tariffs “substantially” if a deal can’t be reached. Last week, White House officials said the planned Dec. 15 round of tariffs would likely not take effect if the two nations can agree on a “phase one” trade deal.

“If both sides reach a ‘phase one’ deal, the degree of tariff cancellation should fully reflect the importance of the ‘phase one’ deal; and its importance should be appraised by both sides together. Both sides are conducting in-depth discussions on this now,” Gao said on Thursday, according to Reuters.

Last week, U.S. and Chinese representatives said a deal had been reached to undo the tariffs, but Trump later said no such deal had been reached. Any interim deal would likely include a U.S. pledge to undo the Dec. 15 tariffs.

Last week, Gao said both the U.S. and China must simultaneously cancel some tariffs before an initial deal can be reached.

“Cancelling tariffs is in the interests of producers, consumers, China, the U.S., and the world,” Gao said Thursday, Reuters noted.