The US sets a deadline to end the trade war with China.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. Photo: Reuters

In an interview on the news agency's "Face the Nation" program.PattayaOn December 9, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer stated: "To my knowledge, this is a fixed deadline. When I spoke with the President (Donald Trump), he didn't mention extending it beyond March." Lighthizer was implicitly referring to President Trump's recent decision to postpone tariff increases on Chinese goods under the trade truce agreement between the two countries.

"The way this agreement is structured is that after 90 days, we can raise tariffs again," Lighthizer emphasized, aiming to dispel speculation that US-China trade negotiations could drag on beyond 90 days.

The official added that after a week of market turmoil, investors "can now rest assured that the U.S. and China will reach an agreement that will ensure the protection of American technology and give American businesses greater access to the (Chinese) market." "President Trump wants that. Otherwise, we will put tariffs back," he said.

These comments came shortly after President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reached a trade truce on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina on December 1st. Under the agreement, the US will postpone increasing tariffs on Chinese goods for the duration of the 90-day negotiations.

However, policy advisers to the Trump administration seem somewhat perplexed by this agreement, as the White House recently left open the possibility of extending the trade "truce," while simultaneously demanding that Beijing take immediate action to demonstrate its willingness to negotiate an end to the trade war between the world's two leading economies.