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China and U.S. officials talk ahead of Trump-Xi meeting

Senior Chinese and U.S. trade officials spoke by phone on Monday ahead of talks between Presidents Trump and Xi set for later this week.

China’s Ministry of Commerce confirmed that Chinese Vice Premier Liu He held a phone conversation with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. The ministry said the officials discussed general trade issues and agreed to maintain communications.

The call reportedly took place at the request of U.S. officials.

INTL FCStone market analyst Arlan Suderman says a positive outcome from the meeting between Trump and Xi could give the markets an extra boost.

“Take the current weather problems creating production issues here in the United States, and then throw in a trade agreement,” Suderman says. “Suddenly that would have much bigger implications for the commodity markets.”

Trump and Xi are expected to meet on the second day of the Friday-Saturday G20 summit in Japan. It will be the first face-to-face meeting for the leaders since trade talks broke off in May.