U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Wednesday that there’s no currency deal yet with China but said he still thinks one is coming.
“Is there an agreement? There is no agreement on anything until there is an agreement on everything. You know that from how these things work,” Lighthizer told Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing.
Lighthizer added: “We have spent a lot of time on currency and the agreement will be enforceable, and I think there will be something on it.”
The Trump administration said late last week that it was on the verge of announcing a currency deal with China. Lighthizer said that while officials have held extensive talks with Beijing, those talks were still ongoing and remain very complicated.
[Read more: Lighthizer hedges on whether Trump will lift steel tariffs against Canada and Mexico]
Following a meeting Friday with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He at the White House, President Trump told reporters, “We have a deal on currency and currency manipulation.”
China critics have long alleged that Beijing manipulates its currency in order to gain an edge in international trade.
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin first announced the prospective deal during an Oval Office press conference Friday, telling the president live on camera that they had a “very strong agreement.”
Other administration officials immediately downplayed the announcement. “We have a lot more work to do over the next two days.” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said. “It’s a little early for champagne.”
