A new round of U.S.-China trade talks are due to kick off in Beijing on Thursday — but one expert says a deal will not likely come until May, or even June.

"It would be surprising to me if we did not have more fits and starts, more stop-and-go in these trade talks given the wide range of issues at stake and given the complexity. I see late May, June more as kind of the realistic time frame than I see anything in April," said Charles Dallara, Partners Group chairman of the Americas.

"If we move into that time frame, I think some understandings will be reached and I think that will be a critical step forward," he told.

Dallara said the talks would be "the first step in a new phase of the economic relationship between China and the U.S.," and to a lesser extent, between Beijing and the rest of the world.