Trump Backtracks, Drops 100% Tariff Threat on China

Donald Trump has said he will ditch his 100% tariff threat on China as he prepares to meet Xi Jinping for trade talks.

This is the latest escalation in the trade war between the U.S. and China, which saw Trump impose tit-for-tat levies as high as 145% on imports of Chinese goods.

The U.S. president confirmed that he planned to meet Xi in two weeks and dialed down his tariff threats after tensions erupted between the two nations last week, Melissa Lawford reported for The Telegraph.

Asked on Fox News on Friday morning if the new 100% tariffs on goods from China that he announced last week would stand, Trump said: “No.”

He added: “It’s not sustainable, but that’s what the number is. It’s probably not, you know. It could stand. But they forced me to do that. I think we’re going to do fine with China. I get along great with him. He’s a very strong leader, an amazing man, when you look at what he’s done.”

Trump last week accused China of holding the world hostage after the Communist state introduced new export controls on the rare earths that are essential in the production of everything from computer chips to cars and solar panels.

In retaliation, Trump said he would place 100% tariffs on Chinese goods imported to the U.S. from Nov. 1 and that he saw “no reason” to go ahead with a planned meeting with Xi, expected to be held on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea.

It marked the latest escalation in the trade war between the U.S. and China, which saw Trump impose tit-for-tat levies as high as 145% on imports of Chinese goods.

The tariffs were paused under a string of truces, but these are set to expire as early as Nov. 10 unless they are extended again.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested on Wednesday that the U.S. could keep China tariffs low in exchange for a delay on the introduction of export controls.

Bessent said: “Right now we are currently in a 90-day roll on the tariff. So is it possible that we could go to a longer roll in return for a delay? Perhaps, but all that’s going to be negotiated in the coming weeks before the leaders meet in Korea.”