US President Donald Trump said that his country will reduce tariffs on goods from China, but in any case the tariff rate will not be zero.
“145% is a lot, it will not be that high“, he said, answering questions from journalists at the White House. “It will decrease significantly, but it will not be zero“, Trump told reporters at the White House.
Last week, he told reporters at the White House that US tariffs on Chinese goods of 145 percent could be reduced and were unlikely to be increased.
On April 2, Trump announced the introduction of tariffs on goods from 185 countries and territories. The universal 10% tariffs went into effect on April 5, and the individual ones on April 9. At the same time, on April 9, the American leader announced that he was suspending additional import tariffs imposed on a reciprocal basis on a number of countries and territories for 90 days. The White House explained that the postponement was related to trade negotiations and that a universal 10% tariff would be in effect during this period.
Total US tariffs on goods from China today reach 145%. In response to the actions of the Trump administration, China raised tariffs on American goods to 125% on April 12.
The economic impact of the increased import tariffs will be felt "for some time" in the United States, Trump said.
"We're actually doing well. I saw the stock markets go up, but we're in a transition period, it's going to take some time, but we're doing well with all the countries," the US leader said, responding to a question about tariffs.
“Things are going well with China. I think everybody, almost everybody, wants to interact with the United States,“ he continued. Trump says the US “has what it needs” from the countries it is negotiating trade with.