US President Trump mulls Iowa as location for signing US-China trade deal

US President Donald Trump on Friday said he is planning to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Iowa and they will sign the 'phase one' of the trade agreement between the two nations.

"I want to get the deal done first, but we're thinking about Iowa. You know why? It would be the largest order in history for farmers. So to me, Iowa makes sense. I love Iowa. It's a possibility," Trump was quoted by The Hill as saying.

Trump, however, said that his administration is considering several occasions and said that Xi would be willing to meet him in the US.

"We're discussing location," he said, adding "I like to get deals done first."

Trump on Thursday said that the US and China are working on selecting a new site for signing of 'phase one' of the trade deal between the two countries after the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Chile, the original venue for the agreement inking was shelved.

Trump said that he and Xi will sign the deal and the new location will be announced soon.

"China and the USA are working on selecting a new site for the signing of Phase One of Trade Agreement, about 60 per cent of the total deal, after APEC in Chile was cancelled due to unrelated circumstances. The new location will be announced soon. President Xi and President Trump will do signing!" he tweeted.

Trump's remarks came after Chile on Wednesday cancelled the summit scheduled to be held on November 16 and 17 amid widespread demonstrations in the capital, Santiago, over a proposed hike in public transport ticket prices. With no secondary hosting option, the plan to sign the new trade deal has now become uncertain.

On October 13, Trump announced he had agreed in principle to the "phase one" trade deal with China's Vice Premier Liu He after high-level negotiations between the two sides in Washington.

He also said that the deal includes China agreeing to raise its US agricultural purchases to between USD 40 billion and USD 50 billion in addition to making reforms concerning intellectual property and financial services.

-ANI