China and the United States appear to be inching toward a trade deal, with leaders in both countries anxious to avoid a further, politically unpopular slowdown in their economies. China has reportedly offered to boost its purchases of farm and energy products substantially while making more modest concessions on technology transfer, intellectual property, market access, industrial policy and subsidies (“U.S., China close in on trade deal”, Wall Street Journal, March 4). China is already the world’s largest net importer of oil and is set to become the largest importer of liquefied natural gas within the next few years, so the purchases allow the country to source supplies it will need anyway. By agreeing to buy LNG and crude from the United States, China is […]