The Latest: Trump aide: 90-day clock on China starts Jan. 1

Image 1 of 2

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin talks with reporters about trade negotiations with China, at the White House, Monday, Dec. 3, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The Latest on the U.S.-China trade talks (all times local):

__

2:30 p.m.

A White House adviser says that the 90-day time period that China has to address U.S. trade complaints or face higher U.S. tariffs starts January 1, rather than immediately.

Larry Kudlow, chairman of the White House's national economic council, clarified the timing in a conference call with reporters Monday. That provides an extra month for U.S. and Chinese negotiators to try to resolve stubborn disagreements over China's trade policies, including its requirement that foreign companies hand over technology to access China's markets.

Yet the two sides have made little progress on the issue in previous talks and analysts are skeptical that a breakthrough can be achieved in another four months. If no resolution is reached, the Trump administration has said it will increase tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports to 25% from 10%.

__

1:50 p.m.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow says there is no "specific agreement" between the United States and China that would address China's tariffs on U.S. auto imports but says he "expects" those duties to go to zero.

President Donald Trump tweeted late Sunday that China would "reduce and remove" its 40% tariff on U.S. cars. China has not confirmed that it would do so.

China has a 15% import tax on all autos. But it raised its tariff on U.S. cars to 40% earlier this year in retaliation for Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods.

"We don't yet have a specific agreement on that," Kudlow said on a conference call with reporters. "But I will just tell you as an involved participant we expect those tariffs to go to zero."