Last Friday, China agreed to more than double its annual purchases of American agricultural products to as much as $50 billion - providing a political shot in the arm to a rural constituency that’s key to President Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election bid, more than a meaningful lift to a nation with gross domestic product of about $21 trillion.

In return, Beijing convinced the U.S. to delay another tariff increase set for this week as White House officials worry about slower growth at home.

However, Trump’s biggest economic threat yet remains: import taxes on all remaining Chinese shipments due to start Dec. 15, which would make a range of popular consumer products more expensive.

Though U.S. shares rose last week as tensions eased, gains were trimmed Friday afternoon when reality set in. It seems that Trump’s biggest deal “in the history of our country” has a significant shortcoming: it isn’t a signed document yet, it amounts to a handshake.

Economists (and markets) are reacting with a range of skepticism, as previous ‘handshakes’ have turned out to be relatively worthless. And growth outlooks for both countries are still expected to drop further as the 18-month trade war continues to drag on.

Unfortunately, without a viable path to existing tariffs declining, this issue will continue to weigh on sentiment and corporate behaviour.

Let’s hope both parties can take this to the next level - at least they’re talking.

Rick Maggi