US and Chinese negotiators are under mounting pressure to compromise in a new round of trade talks this week, as growing financial market volatility and fears of a bruising slowdown hit the global economy.  

A delegation of American officials will meet Chinese counterparts on Monday in Beijing for two days of discussions — the first face-to-face talks since President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping agreed a trade truce at the G20 summit in Argentina last month — with a looming March 2 deadline to strike an agreement or see an escalation in tariffs.

The mission, led by Jeff Gerrish, the US deputy trade representative, follows a torrid month for global markets, which have been convulsed by concerns of a looming downturn in the world’s two biggest economies. The S&P 500 has fallen 13 per cent since the start of October.