A sales person shows a stuffed toy at the 116th Annual North American International Toy Fair at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York, the United States, Feb. 16, 2019. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

NEW YORK, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The outcome of the ongoing U.S.-China trade talks if based on mutual respect may not only benefit the two countries, but the rest of the world as well, the founder and CEO of Hape Toys Peter Handstein has said.

While attending the 2019 North American International Toy Fair in New York City, Handstein told Xinhua in an interview that the whole world has been nervously awaiting the outcome of the trade talks, and he hopes the trade frictions will be resolved on the basis of mutual respect.

Handstein established his company in 1986 in Germany and expanded the business to China in 1995. In China's east coastal city of Ningbo, he set up a base and has lived there for over 20 years.

Hape Toys has become one of the world's largest producers of toys made from sustainable materials. Bamboo, which has been widely planted in south China and known as the food of the giant panda, is one of the materials most frequently used by the company. There is a full collection of toys made from bamboo that has been sold to overseas markets, including the United States.

However, potential tariffs on all goods imported by the United States from China have dampened the mood of many toy industry insiders.

"Today, we are all worried about what will happen between China and the United States," said Handstein.

Hape Toys has expanded its footprint from Germany to China and Canada. "We believe we are global citizens . . . the success of our company comes from the togetherness of an open market," he said.

"We have received a lot of respect in China for what we are doing, and we respect them," Handstein said. "I hope the U.S.-China negotiations will strike a deal based on respect ... (which) will benefit the rest of the world, including China and the United States."