Donald Trump to soon welcome China's Xi Jinping to White House

Washington: US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he would soon host Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the White House, setting the stage for a possible agreement on trade between the world's two largest economies.

The White House said on Tuesday that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer would travel to Beijing for additional talks on a trade dispute that has led to tit-for-tat tariffs between the two countries.

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, who will lead the Beijing talks for China, will also travel to Washington for more discussions starting on May 8, it said.

"The subjects of next week's discussions will cover trade issues including intellectual property, forced technology transfer, non-tariff barriers, agriculture, services, purchases, and enforcement," the White House said.

Beijing and Washington are seeking a deal to end a bitter trade war that has cost them billions of dollars, disrupted supply chains and rattled financial markets.

Trump has said he expects to finalise the deal in a meeting with Xi.