"There was a consensus on taking effective measures to substantially reduce the United States' trade deficit in goods with China," the joint statement said. "To meet the growing consumption needs of the Chinese people and the need for high-quality economic development, China will significantly increase purchases of United States goods and services."U.S. This could be a reference to China's previous pledges to open up more economic sectors to services.U.S. "It is a very limited and tentative agreement mainly designed to deescalate tensions," Prasad said of the joint statement.IP VAGUENESSThe statement was vague on the Trump administration's core intellectual property complaints, saying that both countries "attach paramount importance to intellectual property protections ... China will advance relevant amendments to its laws and regulations, including the Patent Law. "There are concerns among some legislators and trade experts that Trump could give priority to a narrower trade deficit over tackling what they say is China's abuse of intellectual property rights.

Source: The Star May 19, 2018 22:41 UTC