President Donald Trump had for weeks been claiming that his administration was in talks with China over his tariff war, while also claiming that President Xi Jinping had called him — a claim China disputed. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later admitted that the administration had not been talking to China, but talks are now planned for this weekend in Switzerland.
“China, we have not engaged in negotiations with as of yet,” the Treasury Secretary said on Tuesday, The New York Times reported.
Trump imposed a massive 145% tariff on Chinese imports, a source of contention among the Chinese and many Americans.
On Tuesday, Bessent was asked on Fox News if it was “likely” that he would be able to go back to Trump and say, “to show good faith, we could drop this down in the interim to 50%?”
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And while he said, “I’m not gonna give away our strategy,” Bessent also said, “look, everything’s on the table. It’s up to the president at the end of the day.”
Ahead of the talks with China, President Trump Wednesday afternoon was asked by reporters if he would consider lowering the high tariff “to get China to the negotiating table?”
“No,” was the president’s one-word response.
“Trump has defended the 145% tariffs on Chinese imports, claiming China ‘deserves it’ and would likely absorb the costs,” Yahoo Finance reported Wednesday. “But those comments contrast with efforts inside the administration to consider phased tariff reductions and revive trade talks.”
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