President Trump may follow through as early as December with his threat to impose tariffs on all of China’s exports to the United States.
The decision may be contingent on a how things go during a meeting Trump has tentatively set for next month with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the G-20 summit in Argentina. A Monday report from Bloomberg citing three anonymous sources said that tariffs covering all Chinese goods could be announced next month if the meeting does not go well.
The U.S. has already hit $250 billion worth of Chinese goods with tariffs ranging from 10 to 25 percent. The remaining amount, about $257 billion, is still free of tariffs, but Trump has said tariffs would follow by January if China doesn’t eliminate its unfair trade practices.
Asked about the report Monday, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders replied, “I won’t get ahead of the president’s meeting, and I hope it goes well.”
Trump and White House officials sounded pessimistic on whether any progress could be made with China on trade issues at the November meeting.
Requests for China to set its demands in writing have been reportedly refused. Trump told Fox News earlier this month that China had not signaled a willingness to make a deal. “I don’t think so. I mean, I told them, ‘They want to make a deal?’ I said, ‘You guys aren’t ready yet. You’re just not ready,'” he said.
