Trump Set To Delay Tariff Increase For China

Treasury Secretary. Steven Mnuchin says the 25 to 30% hike set to go into effect next week will not be implemented as the U.S. and China finalize this part of the trade deal. The meeting follows two days of talks between high-level trade negotiators

Another person close to the talks confirmed that a partial deal had been reached.

 

 

Trump has announced that he will slap a 15 percent tariff on Dec. 15 on almost all remaining Chinese imports including consumer goods like laptops, smartphone, footwear and clothing — unless a deal can be reached with Beijing.

Trump on Friday also seemed to be taking a longer-term view, looking ahead to a day when he could sign a more comprehensive agreement — the kind of deal that would require negotiators to settle the tougher issues at the heart of the trade war. That type of deal — as long as it would not require changes to U.S. law — would not need congressional approval, unlike the new North American trade deal the Trump administration negotiated with Canada and Mexico last year.

“One of the great things about the China Deal is the fact that, for various reasons, we do not have to go through the very long and politically complex Congressional Approval Process,” Trump tweeted. ” When the deal is fully negotiated, I sign it myself on behalf of our Country. Fast and Clean!”

Optimism that the two sides are headed toward some sort of partial deal boosted Asian markets overnight and led U.S. markets to open more than 1 percent above Thursday’s close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 400 points by 1:30 p.m., while the broader Standard & Poor’s index also climbed 1.5 percent.