Trump, Xi eye G20 talks after 'very good' phone call

But the suggestion flies in the face of recent actions by the administration - and Trump's own words.

WASHINGTON-The White House's top economic adviser said on November 1 that if China does not come up with a satisfactory offer to meet USA trade demands, then President Donald Trump will continue to aggressively pursue his agenda.

However, a senior Trump administration reportedly denied that Trump was preparing to make a deal, a CNBC journalist said in a Twitter post on Friday. "They very much want to make a deal", Trump said.

Trump has asked key United States officials to begin drafting potential terms, Bloomberg said, adding that the push for a possible deal with China was prompted by his telephone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday.

President Trump says his discussions with his Chinese counterpart are moving along "nicely" ahead of their planned meeting at the G-20 in Buenos Aires at the end of the month.

Still, the telephone call did appear to improve the market sentiment, with stocks and yuan/dollar rates rebounding overnight and on Friday morning.

The last round of trade talks with China ended in August with no concrete steps toward reaching a deal. It "likely reflects the fact that businesses in the US are starting to feel the impact of the trade conflict through higher prices and squeezed margins", she said.

"We view the positive statements as political cover that could lay the ground work for further tariffs if the G20 meeting is not fruitful/timed for near-term market and political benefit", said Ed Mills, a policy analyst at Raymond James.

On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said China was probably Washington's biggest long-term security challenge and the United States was engaged in a "multi-pronged effort.to convince China to behave like a normal nation on commerce" and respect worldwide law.

Giving credence to the idea that the thaw in relations may be a short-term stunt are the actions of almost every other part of Trump's administration.

Europe's bond yields rose were already on the rise and a Reuters poll shows economists expect a 190,000 rise in U.S.jobs and see hourly earnings increasing 0.2 per cent having climbed 0.3 per cent in September.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow downplayed the potential for a quick deal.

Kudlow said Thursday at an event in Washington that Trump and Xi might be able to break the logjam on issues during the summit.

And Trump himself has repeatedly said the Chinese were "not ready" to make a deal yet and none was likely in the near future. "They all want to do it". "I think a very good deal will be made with China".

"Trump's so-called directive to his staff to draft an agreement is either a hollow gesture or an ostentatious move, or both", he said. "I told him, 'You're not ready yet'". "Xi said both he and Trump have good visions for a healthy, stable development of the China-US relations as well as expanding economic and trade cooperation, and they should make efforts to realize the wishes", Xinhua said.