Trump willing to cut tariffs on China under one condition - White House
Photo: White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt (Getty Images)
The United States will not implement unilateral tariff reductions imposed on China, according to the White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt.
"The President has made it clear that China needs to make a deal with the United States of America, and we are optimistic that will happen. When that continues, it's up to the President what the tariff rate on China will be," Levitt said.
She added that the US needs to see a reduction in tariffs and non-monetary trade barriers from China.
"We also need to continue seeing these companies abroad return their manufacturing to the United States of America, so we can shore up these supply chains," she said.
US-China tariffs
On April 2, US President Donald Trump initiated a trade war by imposing tariffs on all goods from China at a rate of 54%. Since then, Beijing has responded symmetrically, vowing to go all the way.
Just a few days later, Trump raised tariffs on Chinese goods to 145%, while Beijing increased tariffs on US goods to 125%. Recently, the White House stated that in response to the US tariffs, China now faces tariffs on imports to the US of up to 245%.
In light of these events, Trump called on China to contact him to begin negotiations to resolve the trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies.
China has stated that it wants to see a series of actions from the Trump administration before agreeing to trade talks with the US.
Earlier today, Trump announced that tariffs on Chinese goods would "come down substantially," but he noted that they would not be entirely eliminated.
