Under Trump the US has abandoned its former strategy of engagement with China, instead adopting a hardline stance. But his “trade war” has not borne fruit, while a recent thaw in negotiations shows the possibilities for renewed Sino-US cooperation.

The smaller deficit suggests U.S. economic growth in the first quarter might have been stronger than previously estimated.

Negotiators aim for signing ceremony in late May or early June.

U.S. negotiators have tempered demands that China curb industrial subsidies as a condition for a trade deal after strong resistance from Beijing, according to two sources briefed on discussions, marking a retreat on a core U.S. objective for the trade talks.

The United States and China have largely agreed on a mechanism to police any trade agreement they reach, including establishing new “enforcement offices,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday.

U.S. companies shift purchases of tariff-targeted products like furniture, refrigerators and car tires to countries such as Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan and Mexico.

U.S. officials are “not satisfied yet” about all the issues standing in the way of a deal to end the U.S.-China trade war but made progress in talks with China last week, a top White House official said on Monday.

The two Boeing crashes of recent months show the risks and complications entailed by an increasingly globalized industrial chain. China and the US should use the incident as a trigger to scrutinize their manufacturing processes, including the usage of automation and artificial intelligence, and build novel cooperation mechanisms to prevent future accidents.

President Trump’s top economic advisor says the U.S. and China are getting closer to a trade deal and that top tier officials will be talking again this week. Larry Kudlow’s comments echoed the positive vibe from China’s Xinhua News Agency after the latest round of talks ended Friday.