United States and China Announce Limited “Phase One” Trade Deal

On December 13, 2019, the United States and China formally announced a limited initial agreement to relieve trade tensions between the two countries that have been ongoing for the past 20 months. Under what the countries call a “Phase One” trade agreement, the United States will lower the rate on some already-imposed additional tariffs on Chinese imports and cancel new duties set to take effect, whereas China agreed to increase purchases of U.S. farm goods and other U.S. products and certain reforms in market access, intellectual property, and other areas.