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President donald trump teased trade-watchers on September 25th when he reannounced a deal with Japan (just weeks after announcing an agreement in principle). He promised it would mean “really big dollars for our farmers and for our ranchers”. A White House press release boasted about the extra access American exporters of beef, pork and cheese would get to the Japanese market. Robert Lighthizer, the United States Trade Representative, told journalists that American tariff reductions would arrive by January 1st. But despite all the fanfare, the text of the deal remained unpublished.
There had been hopes that Mr Trump might sign a mini-deal with India, too, during his meeting with the country’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, on September 24th. [...] But negotiators failed to resolve their differences in time.[...]
Full article on The Economist (subscription required)