According to Chinese state media, US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have declared a ceasefire in their global trade war.

Trump and Xi had agreed to restart talks at the G20, after they unexpectedly stalled in May, leading to additional tariffs being imposed by both sides.

There is still no official statement from the White House or plans for when new talks could start.

Whatever the outcome of today's talks, there is still a gap between the US and China on a number of key trade demands, including forced technology transfers and the trade deficit.

John Delury, expert in modern Chinese History, said it would be easier for both sides to pick up where they left off, rather than starting over.

He said that there was already a "long document" which had been put together by negotiators when trade talks stalled.

"I would say this is what Xi wanted, at a minimum. Beijing doesn't want this to head towards (full economic) decoupling," he said.