Chinese Vice Premier and lead trade negotiator Liu He, right, reaches to shake hands with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer before the opening session of trade negotiations at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019. Mark Schiefelbein | Pool | Reuters

However, a delay of punitive measures isn't the same as an agreement. Much of the foreign business community has been frustrated by Beijing's slowness to act on commitments made when the country joined the World Trade Organization in 2001. Last year, Trump also abruptly changed the tone on trade negotiations when both sides thought they were nearing an agreement. What's important, analysts said, will be a timeline for implementation on any trade deal, and specific consequences if commitments are not enacted. Even Xinhua pointed out in a Chinese-language article on Monday that, according to a CNBC translation, "negotiations become more difficult the closer they get to the end. The chance this causes greater uncertainty cannot be ruled out." The American Chamber of Commerce in China said in a statement Monday that it's pleased with the latest developments on trade, but "what is common among all of our members is the desire to progress on the fundamental underlying issues, which will be necessary if a long-term solution is to be found." The chamber cited a survey of its members last week that showed they "most valued greater market access for their industries; guarantees that antitrust, environmental protection, product safety, and other measures will be enforced equally against Chinese and foreign enterprises and individuals; improvements in intellectual property protection and elimination of pressure to transfer technology; and participation by foreign companies in standard setting."

China is likely to agree (to) some sort of deal and just run the clock down on the Trump administration. Chris Rogers research analyst at Panjiva

China has made some progress in reducing the requirement for joint ventures, analysts said. Beijing is also increasing its efforts to improve intellectual property protection, especially as the country tries to move into its own production of higher-value technologies. Still, the Chinese government's preferred pace of action may not be fast enough for the U.S., or businesses affected by tariffs.