The Trump administration will consider reducing tariffs on Chinese goods, depending on how negotiations with Beijing develop, a source familiar with the matter said today. He added that any measures would not be taken unilaterally, Reuters reported.
The statement followed a report by the Wall Street Journal that the White House is considering reducing tariffs on Chinese imports to ease tensions between the two countries.
According to the newspaper, tariffs on Chinese products could be reduced from the current 145 percent to between 50 and 65 percent, citing an unnamed White House official.
“We will have a fair deal with China,” Trump told reporters today, but did not comment on the specific allegations in the report.
His words come after optimistic statements a day earlier, when he said that an agreement on reducing tariffs was possible.
White House spokesman Kush Desai said any reports of tariffs were “pure speculation” if they did not come directly from President Trump.
The tariff levels outlined in the Journal report could still be high enough, experts say, to discourage significant trade between the world’s two largest economies.
German shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd said on Wednesday that 30 percent of its shipments from China to the United States had been canceled.
China responded by imposing tariffs of 125 percent on American goods, with additional measures in the works.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said both sides considered the current tariffs unsustainable, but added that he did not know when negotiations might begin.
