US-China trade deal: Both countries near Phase 1 signing, says China commerce ministry

China’s official spokesperson of the commerce ministry said on Thursday that the United States and China are going through necessary procedures before the signing the Phase 1 of the trade deal.

Gao Feng, the commerce ministry spokesman, made the comments to reporters at a regular briefing.

He also said that China is in close touch with the United States on signing a Phase 1 trade deal.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he and Chinese President Xi Jinping will have a signing ceremony to sign the first phase of the US-China trade deal agreed to this month.

"We will be having a signing ceremony, yes," Trump told reporters. "We will ultimately, yes, 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."

(With inputs from Reuters)