The Financial Times quoted five sources earlier that Trump administration officials are arguing whether to abolish the 15% tariff imposed on US$112 billion in Chinese goods in early September.
This move by the United States is equivalent to responding to the core demands of a trade agreement between China and the United States. U.S. political news website Politico quoted three sources yesterday as saying that Beijing "overall pressure" Washington to remove tariff measures not only requires the US to cancel the 15% tariffs scheduled to be imposed on US$116 billion in Chinese goods in mid-December, but also put pressure on it. The United States withdrew the 15% tariff measures implemented in September. In exchange, Beijing agreed to purchase up to US$5 billion worth of American agricultural products within two years, implement commitments such as opening the financial market, and enhancing intellectual property protection before China considered signing the first phase of a trade agreement with the United States.
The source also said that Beijing has always been eager to cancel the existing tariff measures that the United States has imposed on Chinese goods, including the abolition of 25% of the previously imposed tariffs on US$250 billion in land products, or at least half of them. The suggestions were all rejected by Trump officials, and they are not included in the first phase of the agreement. At this stage, the United States has cancelled the tax increase plan originally scheduled for mid-October to increase from 25% to 30% for US$250 billion of goods.
A source familiar with the situation told the Financial Times that although more and more people in Trump’s team believed that the United States should make concessions and abolish the current tariffs imposed on Chinese goods, but they were not sure whether Trump would agree to it, so they withdrew 15 % Tariff recommendations may be difficult to implement.
Myron Brilliant, executive vice president in charge of international affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, pointed out that both China and the United States have realized the importance of signing an agreement at this stage, and at the same time, they have also realized that they must make concessions. However, Washington hawks and the U.S. Congress may oppose the reduction of existing tariffs, believing that this will reduce the pressure on China by the United States and force Trump to face accusations of bowing to Beijing before the 2020 election.
The leaders of China and the United States were originally scheduled to sign the first phase of the trade agreement at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Conference (APEC) Summit held in Chile in the middle of this month. Unexpectedly, Chile canceled its hosting due to domestic protests. Now the two sides are discussing alternative locations. Alaska , Hawaii, and Iowa, a major agricultural town in the United States, are all considered locations.
Sources said that the United States is struggling to develop a mechanism to ensure that Beijing will implement the agreement. The most discussed mechanism among officials is the re-implementation of all tariffs. A senior White House official revealed that the first phase of the agreement will almost be signed, but the two sides are still negotiating on issues such as intellectual property protection, and Beijing is also considering signing an agreement in neutral regions outside of China and the United States.
In response to the report, the White House, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Trade Representative office were unwilling to respond.