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They never will or intend on making trade progress. “They have made no progress,” said another source familiar with the talks, adding that the Chinese side had not made headway in persuading US negotiators to consider a freeze on tariff increases, a main priority for Beijing.

And confirming that the week's entire negotiation was a fiasco from the start, the SCMP reports that the Chinese delegation is planning to leave Washington on Thursday - one day early - and after just one day of principal-level talks, the SCMP source noted. Beijing’s negotiating team, headed by Vice-Premier Liu He, had previously planned to leave Washington late on Friday, allowing for up to two full days of talks.

Liu arrived in the US capital on Tuesday afternoon amid one of the tensest weeks for bilateral relations since the trade war began in July 2018