Trump ramps up Chinese tariff threat
Mnuchin invites Beijing to resume talks amid tensions
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday cast doubt on the possibility of a breakthrough in trade talks with China, saying he was prepared to hammer China’s economy with tough new economic penalties if Beijing doesn’t offer concessions.
“We are under no pressure to make a deal with China,” Trump wrote on Twitter, trying to dispute reports that he was seeking to cut a deal. “They are under pressure to make a deal with us. Our markets are surging, theirs are collapsing. We will soon be taking Billions in Tariffs & making products at home. If we meet, we meet?”
The Twitter post came President Trump and China’s Xi Jinping will likely cross paths this month at the U.N. or in November in Argentina. after White House officials confirmed that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had offered a formal invitation to Chinese leaders to restart trade talks, aimed at de-escalating the trade battle between the world’s largest economies.
The announcement followed reports by U.S. and European chambers of commerce that foreign companies in China have been hurt by earlier tariff hikes by both sides in the fight over Beijing’s technology policy.
Trump’s Twitter post is consistent with his recent bravado toward China, but it could make Chinese lead- ers dubious that Trump will be willing to negotiate a deal. Talks between both countries have already broken down several times, at least once because Trump balked at a deal at the last moment.
On Wednesday, White House officials had seemed optimistic at the potential for new talks.
“Well, it’s just an invitation, as far as I know,” White House National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said on Fox Business Network. “There’s some discussions and information that we received that the Chinese government — the top of the Chinese government wished to pursue talks.”
Any talks would resume amid doubts over prospects for a diplomatic settlement.
“The question is whether anything has changed,” said Jeff Moon, a former U.S. trade negotiator in the Obama administration. “Who’s in charge on the American side and what do they want?”
Robert Holleyman, former deputy U.S. trade representative, said U.S. demands for fundamental changes in China’s state-directed economy would make for difficult talks. “We are a long way from finding a solution,” said Holleyman, a partner at Crowell & Moring. “And a solution will require some tough choices, especially on the part of China.”
Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will likely need to haggle personally over any settlement, he said.
The two leaders may meet on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly later this month and will likely see each other in November at the G-20 summit in Argentina.
The White House is under pressure from U.S. companies to resolve its differences with China swiftly before either country imposes more tariffs or restrictions that these firms argue could hurt growth and lead to lost U.S. jobs.
Trump has been defiant, saying his rigid approach is necessary to force change in Beijing.
Trump has accused the Chinese government of ripping off U.S. businesses and workers for years through protectionist trade policies, currency manipulation, and stealing intellectual property.
The U.S. bought $505 billion in goods from China last year, and Trump has already moved to impose tariffs on $50 billion of those goods as a way to try to force concessions from the Chinese government.
He said last week that he has an order ready to impose tariffs on an additional $200 billion in Chinese goods, and then another order ready that would impose tariffs on every product shipped from China to the United States if Beijing doesn’t agree to U.S. demands.