President Trump said Tuesday that the hefty tariff rate on China will significantly be reduced after he negotiates with Chinese President Xi Jinping, expressing optimism about a trade deal.
“145 percent is very high. It won’t be that high, it’s not going to be that high … it won’t be anywhere near that high,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “It will come down substantially, but it won’t be zero.”
The overall tariff level imposed on China is 145 percent, which remained in place after Trump delayed the “reciprocal” tariffs on other trading partners for 90 days and reduced them to 10 percent.
“We’re going to be very nice. They’re going to be very nice, and we’ll see what happens. But ultimately, they have to make a deal because otherwise they’re not going to be able to deal in the United States,” Trump said, referring to China.
He cited his relationship with Xi as his reason for being optimistic about a deal. The White House said earlier Tuesday that it was “setting the stage for a deal with China,” seeking to reassure nervous financial markets and investors that progress with Beijing could be imminent.
“China was taking us for a ride, and it’s not going to happen. We’re going to be very good to China, have a great relationship with President Xi. But, they would make billions and billions and billions of dollars a year, and they would build their military out of the United States and what they made. So, that won’t happen,” Trump said. “But they’re going to do very well, and I think they’re going to be happy, and I think we’re going to live together very happily and ideally work together.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told a private meeting of investors in Washington on Tuesday that he expects a “de-escalation” in the trade war between the U.S. and China, according to multiple reports. China has levied retaliatory tariffs on American goods.
The president also said Tuesday that his team will “set the deal” when the 90-day pause has ended if trading partners are not able to reach one. And, he said he has been in talks with “many, many” world leaders in the weeks since he paused the reciprocal tariffs, predicting the negotiation process will “go pretty quickly.”
The administration has received 18 proposals from other countries as part of ongoing trade negotiations, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.
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