(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke on the phone with their Chinese counterparts as the two sides relaunch talks to end their trade dispute, marking the first high-level contact since their presidents agreed to a tentative truce last month.
The American officials spoke to Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and Commerce Minister Zhong Shan on Tuesday, according to an emailed statement from a U.S. government official, who declined to be named in line with policy. Both sides will continue these talks as appropriate, the official said, without offering more details on the next steps.
President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed to a tentative pause in their almost year-long trade war after meeting at the Group-of-20 leaders’ summit in Japan on June 29, and they directed their negotiators to find a path forward on a deal. The leaders didn’t outline a time-frame for negotiations or a deadline to finalize a trade deal.