Trump’s China tariffs seen as ‘status quo’ amid TikTok talks, other issues

US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on China are unlikely to ease, despite ongoing talks towards a comprehensive deal targeted for November, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The US seems “very comfortable” with the current rate of tariffs, the sources said, adding that the recent negotiations have mostly revolved around “broader” issues like TikTok, subsidies, trade deficit and export controls since the Trump administration remains focused on collecting revenues to fix the American fiscal deficit.

“President Trump is very comfortable with the current level of tariff … and Chinese imports is a big chunk” of the revenue source, one person familiar said. Another person noted that the US side was “happy” with the current tariff level.

Trump signalled as much in a social media post on Wednesday, saying that the US has “made so much money on tariffs” that his administration is “going to take a small portion of that money and help our farmers”.

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The “America-first” president accused Beijing of not buying for “negotiating reasons only”, adding that in his much-anticipated meeting with President Xi Jinping “in four weeks”, soybeans will be a “major topic of discussion”, referring to the bilateral talk set to take place on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in South Korea later this month.

South China Morning Post