At the signing ceremony, Trump said China would buy US $ 50 billion of US agricultural products. A few minutes later, Liu He also said China would import US $ 40 billion worth of American agricultural products each year and could import more if demand was higher.
The details of the agreement, published by the White House, are 86 pages long, including eight chapters ranging from strict intellectual property regulations in China to Beijing's commitment to buying at least US $ 200 billion in goods, US services in the next two years, as well as China's pledge not to manipulate currency. Under the agreement, this year China pledged to buy at least US $ 32.9 billion worth of goods producing US $ 12.5 billion of agricultural products, US $ 18.5 billion of energy and US $ 12.8 billion of US services. In 2021, the country continues to increase purchases of manufactured goods to 44.8 billion USD, agricultural products 19.5 billion USD, energy 33.9 billion USD and services 25.1 billion USD.
Trump: The two sides will correct mistakes in the past
Opening the signing ceremony at the White House on January 15 (local time), Mr. Trump said "it is taking an important step forward", opening a fair and mutually beneficial future in trade. "We corrected mistakes together in the past," he said.
Trump said the first phase deal would provide economic security for American families, businesses and farmers. At the same time, Trump praised the Chinese Deputy Prime Minister as a friend and said "will visit China in the near future".
Vice President Mike Pence asserted that the agreement would put the United States at the forefront. "There still exist in the two countries, but today's agreement marks a new milestone, a more useful relationship. In fact, this is a good signal, meaning that Beijing and Washington are on their way. the deal ended the trade war completely, "Pence said.
Trump was very comfortable speaking at the signing ceremony and kept joking around. As soon as he was on the podium, Trump did not forget to turn to Robert Lighthizer and commented, The US Trade Representative "has been quite busy for the past two years." He asked happily, "Is this agreement more difficult or easier than you imagined?". Lighthizer immediately replied: "Harder".
By the time he gave up the podium to the Chinese representative, Trump continued to wry that Deputy Prime Minister Liu He deserved a break after completing the hard work and should watch a movie.
In the beginning of his part, Liu He read Chinese President Xi Jinping's letter to Mr. Trump. Also saying that the first phase deal is good for China, the US and the whole world, Xi hopes that the US will treat Chinese businesses fairly and pledge to cooperate closely with Trump.
"The US - China must work together to solve the world's problems. This is the only right choice, the two sides must work together with mutual respect," Mr. Luu Hac emphasized.
Only remove taxes when reaching stage 2 agreement
Trump said taxes on two-thirds of imports would remain the same. "I will remove the tax when I agree to the second phase agreement," he asserted that the US needed these tax policies. Trump said the two sides will continue negotiating a second phase deal after the first phase agreement comes into effect.
"This will be the biggest deal ever seen," Trump said of the second phase deal.
The world's two largest economies reached agreement in the first stage last month. This is a big step in the trade war, which causes losses to American farmers and creates an obstacle for global economic growth.
Trump said that signing a broad agreement and suppressing commercial abuse was a priority before the US presidential election later this year. The long-running trade war between the two countries has worried investors, many are also concerned it continues to drag economic growth around the world.
