More confusion surrounding American trade policy towards China. U.S. President Trump took to Twitter seeming to undermine his own officials over an offer of talks with Beijing. It happened just hours after the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said that it had received an invitation for talks. CGTN's White House Correspondent Nathan King reports.

To talk or not to talk, that is the two hundred billion dollar question. As the Trump administration prepares to impose tariffs on that amount of Chinese imports, there is talk about talks.

Trump's chief economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, telling the Wall Street Journal Wednesday:

"Most of us believe it's better to talk than not to talk, and I think the Chinese government is willing to talk."

"You could say that communication has picked up a notch."

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce then confirmed an invitation to talk.

GAO FENG, SPOKESMAN CHINESE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE "China has indeed received the U.S. invitation to hold trade talks, and we welcome that. The two sides are communicating over some specific details. We believe escalation of trade conflicts does not meet the interests of either side."

But then Thursday at the White House, the U.S. President tweeted this:

"The Wall Street Journal has it wrong, we are under no pressure to make a deal with China, they are under pressure to make a deal with us. Our markets are surging, theirs are collapsing. We will soon be taking in Billions in Tariffs & making products at home. If we meet, we meet."

Trump suggesting that tariffs could soon be imposed and failing to confirm the offer of talks with Beijing is creating more confusion over U.S. trade policy.

If the latest round of tariffs of up to 25% on 200 billion dollars' worth of Chinese imports are imposed, it would be a dramatic escalation in this trade war. Many U.S. consumer goods like smart phones, laptops and headphones could see big price hikes just before the busy U.S. holiday shopping season. China has said it will respond once again.

There is a huge push back against the president's policy here in the U.S. Contrary to the U.S. President's tweet, there is growing domestic pressure to talk to Beijing, though previous talks have failed.

NATHAN KING WHITE HOUSE "Amid the confusion, the American Chamber of Commerce in China says that nearly two-thirds of U.S. companies operating in China say they've been 'negatively' affected by the trade war. They are urging both nations to start negotiating again, the trade group says more U.S. tariffs will only make matters worse. Companies also say they are now experiencing more bureaucratic hurdles inside China. Nathan King, CGTN at the White House."