US-China trade talks enter Day 2; top US official describes conversation as “very good”

Amid the growing worries over the trade war between the US and China, senior officials from both countries met each other on the second day of their high-profile trade talks in Beijing on Friday, May 4.

The talks were being held to find way out to prevent an escalation in a war which could lead to the imposition of tariffs worth billions of dollars. Washington and Beijing have already imposed sanctions on each other after US President Donald Trump initiated the move to penalise China which the US accuses of stealing intellectual property. China retaliated with a list of US goods worth $50 million after the latter threatened to levy fresh tariffs on Chinese imports worth $150 billion.

The repercussions of the trade war between two of the world's biggest economies were already being felt on the global economy and the ongoing talks were seen as a required check to prevent things from worsening.

American Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin who is leading the US delegates, told the media on Friday morning that the two sides were having "very good conversations," AFP reported.

The talks are being held at the historical Diaoyutai State guest house in Beijing.

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The officials, however, did not divulge details about the talks, the AFP report added.

Meanwhile, in Washington, Mark Calabria, economic adviser to US Vice President Mike Pence, said the inaugural day of the talks was "fairly positive", Bloomberg News reported. The talks started on Thursday, May 3.

Calabria said the US gave China a "detailed list of asks" saying Washington wanted Beijing to lower its tariffs to match its own.

On the Chinese side, Vice Premier in charge of the economy Liu He is leading the delegation.