China's president says he wants to work out US trade deal

Chinese President Xi Jinping said the country is willing to work out an initial trade deal with the United States.

“We want to work for a ‘phase one’ agreement on the basis of mutual respect and equality,” Xi told representatives of an international forum. “When necessary we will fight back, but we have been working actively to try not to have a trade war. We did not initiate this trade war and this is not something we want.”

Economists have warned that a prolonged trade war between the United States and China harms the global economy by disrupting supply chains and causing other negative impacts.

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