President Trump on Thursday told his aides to move forward with tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods, even as the administration seeks to restart trade talks with Beijing, according to Bloomberg News.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin this week proposed another round of talks with China in an effort to ease tensions in the escalating trade war that is raising concerns on Capitol Hill and throughout the business community.
{mosads}Trump’s strong desire to narrow the expanding trade gap with China has led to tit-for-tat tariffs of $50 billion imposed by each country. He has promised tariffs of $200 billion on China’s imports, a move that’s been delayed while officials determine a final list of products based on recently submitted public comments.
Trump met Thursday with his top trade advisers, including Mnuchin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, to discuss the China tariffs, Bloomberg News reported on Friday.
He expressed confidence this week that his sweeping tariffs plan will work.
“They are under pressure to make a deal with us,” Trump tweeted on Thursday, referring to China. “Our markets are surging, theirs are collapsing. We will soon be taking in Billions in Tariffs & making products at home. If we meet, we meet?”
Trump has said he’s using the tariffs as leverage to force China to change what he considers unfair trade practices, like stealing U.S. intellectual property and forcing U.S. firms to transfer their technology to China.
Last week, Trump threatened a third batch of tariffs on another $267 billion of Chinese imports, covering more than all Chinese exports to the U.S.
Updated at 1:14 p.m.