“If we’re close to a deal where we think we can make a real deal and it’s going to get done, I could see myself letting that slide for a little while,” Trump told reporters during a cabinet meeting Tuesday. Trump has threatened to more than double the rate
(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump said he’s open to extending a March 1 deadline to raise tariffs on Chinese products if the two sides are near an agreement, sending a conciliatory signal amid talks to resolve the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.
“If we’re close to a deal where we think we can make a real deal and it’s going to get done, I could see myself letting that slide for a little while,” Trump told reporters during a cabinet meeting Tuesday. “But generally speaking I’m not inclined” to delay raising tariffs, he added.
Negotiators from the two countries began their latest round of talks this week ahead of the March 1 deadline for additional U. S. tariffs on Chinese goods. Trump has threatened to more than double the rate of duties on $200 billion in Chinese imports.
Trump’s comments are the strongest indication that he’s willing to give the Chinese more time to firm up a deal to head off the bruising trade conflict, which has cast a cloud over the global economy. Extending the deadline could pave the way for a potential deal-clinching meeting with President Xi Jinping.
