Following setbacks in negotiations with Beijing, President Donald Trump has announced he would impose a 10 per cent tariff on $300 billion worth Chinese imports that are not yet subject to US duties. The new tariff will be imposed starting September 1, he said in a tweet. Another $250 billion in Chinese goods are already subject to a 25 per cent US tariff. US treasury secretary Steven Munchin and US trade representative Robert Lighthizer returned from talks with Chinese counterparts in Shanghai this week without much progress. Negotiations have been at an impasse since May after the United States said China reneged on provisions of a tentative deal.
The two sides confirmed they had discussed raising Chinese imports of US agricultural products, which have fallen drastically this year, and that they would meet again in Washington in September, according to global newswires. State-run Chinese media called the Shanghai talks ‘pragmatic’. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met at the Group of 20 summit in Osaka in June to get the talks back on track. But Trump said China failed to fulfill a handshake agreement with Xi to buy more US agricultural products.
