The Chinese commerce ministry stated on Thursday that it's in close communication with the United States concerning the phase 1 of the trade deal, as both sides advance towards that moment making the necessary preparations.
"At present, China and the United States are carrying out the necessary procedures of legal review, translation and proofreading, and are in close communication on the subsequent steps toward signing the agreement," explained the Chinese commerce ministry spokesman Gao Feng.
The comments follow the latest president Trump's statements when he said that there would be a signing ceremony with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
"We will be having a signing ceremony, yes," Trump said to reporters on Tuesday, "We will ultimately, when we get together. And we'll be having a quicker signing because we want to get it done. The deal is done, it's just being translated right now," he added.
Feng also stated that the latest US decision to sign the defense authorization act, which slows down the lifting of sanctions on Huawei as well as restricting the use of federal funds on acquiring Chinese buses and rail cars
"We have noted that the US defence authorisation act... contains a number of adverse provisions against Chinese enterprises, which China firmly opposes," he explained.
The spokesman didn't give details regarding any possible countermeasure but highlighted that China will be paying close attention to the impact that the bill will have on Chinese enterprises so it takes the necessary measures to protect its rights and interests.
The U.S. trade representative stated that phase 1 of the trade deal is expected to be signed during the first week of January.
By 12:43 GMT the US dollar went down against the Canadian Dollar by 0.05 percent, hitting the 1.3153 level. On the other hand, it went up against the Swiss Franc by 0.13 percent, climbing to the 0.9813 level, and gained 0.22 percent against the Japanese Yen, hitting the 109.60 level.