US Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, remarks in an interview with Reuters
- Does not expect material impact of virus outbreak on Phase One deal
- Impact on US-China trade could change as the situation develops
- A better assessment is only possible in a few weeks' time
The headline sounds a bit harsher than intended as he also cautions against jumping to conclusions about the impact on the global economy from the "human tragedy" that is the coronavirus outbreak.
He says that China is currently focused on the virus for now and "based on everything we know, I don't expect that it's going to be material" on the impact to the Phase One deal.
I reckon China would've appreciated some leeway on the deal - where possible - but they also surely won't be willing to admit that they cannot fulfill their end of the bargain just because of the virus situation in the country.
