Chinese Foreign Ministry: Trade friction can be solved through consultations

“Economic and trade friction between the two countries could be properly resolved through consultations, as long as they are based on mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit,” said Lu Kang, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman at a regular press conference on Wednesday.

Containers at the Port of Los Angeles on June 18, 2019 in San Pedro, California, U.S. [Photo: AFP]

“In the consultation process, the most important thing is to take care of each country's legitimate concerns and find a solution acceptable to both parties,” Lu continued. “Anything against this principle will lead nowhere,” he added.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump held a phone talk Tuesday. Trump said during the call that the U.S. side attaches importance to U.S.-China economic and trade cooperation and hopes that the teams of both sides can communicate and find a solution to the current differences as soon as possible.

Xi agreed that the trade negotiating teams from the two sides should continue to communicate over how to solve differences.

“A mutually beneficial agreement between China and the U.S. is not only in the interests of the Chinese and American peoples, but also meet the general expectation of the international society,” Lu said.

“I noticed that Kudlow, director of the U.S. National Economic Council, said in an interview yesterday that the reaction in the U.S. market shows that talks are better than no talks!” Lu said.

U.S. stocks rallied on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 closing in on record levels. The trade-sensitive industrials SPLRCI jump 1.62 percent, while technology stocks SPLRCT gained 1.79 percent, offering the biggest boost to the benchmark index.