The United States and China held two days of talks in Beijing on economic policy with no conclusive results. After the US trade deficit with China reached a record $24.4 billion recently, many Americans feel that the Chinese keep the value of the yuan artificially low so that they can sell more goods to the United States. Some Americans hoped that during the recent talks Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson would encourage the Chinese to change this policy, but no specific plans were made. Paulson told the American television channel CNBC "When we talk about reform with the Chinese there is total agreement in terms of what they need to do. We're in agreement about the policies, so the question, the debate, is about timing." Further talks are scheduled for May in Washington.