Bank Secretary Steven Mnuchin put a positive face on the state of U.S.-China sell negotiations, saying Monday the talks so far already have yielded manifest benefits.
“I think we’ve made very meaningful progress,” he told CNBC’s “Cry Box.” “Now it’s up to both of us to make sure that we can implement it.”
His comments finish a go over amid a back-and-forth tussle between the two countries over the state of custom, a key issue that President Donald Trump has vowed to resolve. Authority officials have been meeting and negotiating with their Chinese counterparts beyond myriad issues, including but not limited to technology, agricultural and energy products.
The two sides possess backed off on threatened tariffs over dozens of products, though Mnuchin translated that if China doesn’t follow through on its pledges, the duties desire be imposed.
“If things aren’t fixed and we don’t get what we want, the president can again put the tariffs back on,” he said.
The latest developments saw the U.S. walk away with a warranty from China to import more U.S. goods, though without unequivocal parameters set. Over the weekend, Mnuchin said a trade war has been put “on imprison.”
Still, Mnuchin said investors should view the talks as a overcoming for the American side.
“We came away with a very comprehensive framework concordat that needs to be implemented, but has lots of different aspects,” he said. Sought by CNBC’s Becky Quick whether investors should view his annotations over the weekend that a trade war has been put on hold as a glass half-full or half-empty prcis, Mnuchin said, “It’s completely half-full.”
What’s left now will be the mechanics.
Mnuchin swayed the recent talks will serve as a framework now for companies to negotiate privately. He signified particular enthusiasm regarding energy, estimating that U.S. companies disposed to can sell $40 billion to $50 billion to companies in China.
He supplemented that one of the main concerns from Chinese officials was simply the gift of the U.S. to deliver the goods that China wants.
“This should be really, very good for U.S economic growth,” Mnuchin said. “You combine this with tax insults and I think we’re looking at very strong GDP growth for the rest of the year.”
Fiscal markets have been nervous over the prospect of a trade war between the two realms that could turn global. Mnuchin’s weekend comments materialized to assuage traders, and the stock market is likely to open sharply tall Monday on Wall Street.