China announces a new list of 79 US products eligible for retaliatory tariff waivers.

Trump rules out renegotiating deal

BEIJING: China announced yesterday a new list of 79 US products eligible for waivers from retaliatory tariffs imposed at the height of the bilateral trade war, amid continued pressure on Beijing to boost imports from the United States.

China’s Finance Ministry said in a statement that the new waivers would take effect on May 19 and expire on May 18, 2021. The latest list waives tariffs on products including ores of rare earth metals, gold ores, silver ores and concentrates.

The ministry did not disclose the imports value of the products.

Beijing in February said it would grant exemptions for 696 US goods including key products such as soybeans and pork based on applications from companies.

Beijing and Washington’s top trade negotiators held a call last week and discussed implementation of the “Phase 1’’ deal signed in January.

Under the deal, China agreed to increase its purchases of US goods from a 2017 baseline by $200 billion over two years, with about $77 billion in increased purchases in the first year and $123 billion in the second year.

Renewed tensions between the two countries, sparked by the Covid-19 pandemic that began in China late last year, are also raising questions about the trade truce.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he opposed renegotiating the US-China Phase 1 trade deal after a Chinese state-run newspaper reported some government advisers in Beijing were urging fresh talks and possibly invalidating the agreement.

Trump, who himself has considered abandoning the pact signed in January, told a White House press briefing he wanted to see if Beijing lived up to the deal to massively increase purchases of US goods.

“No, not at all. Not even a little bit,” Trump said when asked if he would entertain the idea of reworking Phase 1.

“I’m not interested. We signed a deal. I had heard that too, they’d like to reopen the trade talk, to make it a better deal for them.”

The Global Times reported on Monday that unidentified advisers close to the talks have suggested that Chinese officials revive the possibility of invalidating the trade pact and negotiate a new one to tilt the scales more to the Chinese side.

The tabloid is published by the People’s Daily, the official newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party. While not an official party mouthpiece, its views are believed at times to reflect those of its leaders.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry adopted a measured stance on trade yesterday despite the heightened tensions between the two countries, saying the existing Phase 1 deal “is a good thing for both China and the United States.’’

“China and America reaching the Phase 1 trade deal benefits China, benefits the US and the whole world,” Zhao Lijian, spokesman at the ministry, said at a regular media briefing in Beijing.

“Both sides should carry out the agreement while sticking to the principles of equality and mutual respect.”