After more than one and a half years of negotiation, the world's two largest economies have finally reached an agreement on a preliminary trade deal, one that bilateral relations experts say might not be ideal but is very welcome.

Some experts attending the second round of the China-U.S. Leading Scholars Dialogue, held December 13 to 14 in Shanghai, shared their opinions in interviews with CGTN. 

"I think in some ways both parties sort of went up to the edge of the abyss, looked over and decided this is probably not in either one of our interest and we should find a way to solve this problem," said Susan Thornton, former acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs of the U.S., who referred to the agreement as a return to pragmatism and a move that will be welcome by most U.S. businesses and observers.

The initial trade deal, which has yet to be inked, is expected to include a tariff reduction and a commitment from the Chinese side to purchase more U.S. goods, though neither the U.S. nor China echoed each other in exact numbers.

"I think it's a welcome development that will help de-escalate the tension and provide discipline in a number of the important areas that have been under discussion for about 18 months," said Wendy Cutler, vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute and also former acting deputy U.S. trade representative.

Cutler also refuted the view that there is nothing substantial in the agreement, saying that important issues such as intellectual property protection and technology transfer are addressed in the text, according to explanations from both sides.

Arthur Kroeber, a senior non-resident fellow of the Brookings-Tsinghua Center, also called the criticisms unfair and referred to China's new foreign investment law and the accelerated liberalization of the financial sector as material progress and promises delivered.

"My hope would be that the two sides can actually sign the deal, put it into force and take this as a first step towards a longer set of negotiations to try and resolve some of the more difficult commercial issues between the two," said Kroeber.