China wants to see a number of steps from President Donald Trump’s administration before it will agree to trade talks, including showing more respect by reining in disparaging remarks by members of his cabinet,

President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States was in talks with China on tariffs, adding that he was confident the world's largest economies could make a deal to end a bitter trade war.

China's commerce ministry on Thursday urged the United States to stop putting "extreme pressure" on the world's second-largest economy and demanded respect in any trade talks, but the two sides remained at an impasse over who should start those talks.