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Ahead of key China talks, Trump says 80% tariff 'seems right'
MSN--(Reuters) ^ | 5 9 | Doina Chiacu

Posted on 05/09/2025 6:48:39 AM PDT by dennisw

- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that 80% tariffs on Chinese goods "seems right," making his first suggestion of a specific alternative to the 145% levies he has imposed on China ahead of weekend talks to contain a trade war between the world's two biggest economies.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and chief trade negotiator Jamieson Greer will meet Chinese economic tsar He Lifeng in Switzerland for talks that could be the first step toward resolving their trade disputes.

"China should open up its market to USA — would be so good for them!!! Closed markets don’t work anymore!!!" Trump said in a Truth Social post.

"80% tariff on China seems right. Up to Scott B," Trump said.

While Trump has on several recent occasions indicated that he expects the punitive tariff rates he has imposed on China to come down, he had not until now floated a potential figure for where they may fall to.

Following the post, U.S. stock futures dipped slightly before rising somewhat, while in Europe the U.S. dollar and European stocks also briefly weakened.

Since taking office in January, Trump has hiked levies on imports from China to 145%, in addition to those he imposed on many Chinese goods during his first term and the duties levied on Beijing by the Biden administration.

(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS:
Some say that China tariffs are the only ones that Trump really cares about. That all other nations tariffs are secondary. That they are put up there to make it look like that we are not just confronting China. I agree.
1 posted on 05/09/2025 6:48:39 AM PDT by dennisw
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To: dennisw

A deal that stops China from blatantly stealing our intellectual property that is enforceable seems right too.


2 posted on 05/09/2025 6:56:51 AM PDT by Opinionated Blowhard (When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.)
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To: dennisw

Meanwhile Xi is in Moscow for 4 days to give his pal Bad Vlad a Brics based PR boost. Xi is there to see Putin’s prideful pissant parade of Russian military equipment and weaponry. There to discuss better relations ahead of the Brics summit conference in June. Where the plan is to sabotage the US Dollar as the world’s premier reserve currency.

The above has been axis of evil certified ®


3 posted on 05/09/2025 6:57:11 AM PDT by dennisw (💯🇺🇸 Truth is Hate to those who Hate the Truth. 🇺🇸💯)
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To: dennisw

I think the idea is to give the US enough time to onshore, re-industrialize US and establish new non-Chinese supply chains.
When Larry Kudlow was with Trump 1.0 in a meeting with Xi, Trump asked Xi to stop the fentanyl from China and Xi agreed. Of course he lied to Trump and everyone else. Trump is no fool and as an accomplished deal maker, he knows he can’t count on China, CCP or Xi to honor any agreements. They lie, cheat, steal and spy. The only rational approach is to uncouple with China as much as possible and with the least amount of disruption in the interim.


4 posted on 05/09/2025 6:59:41 AM PDT by grumpygresh
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To: dennisw

I don’t think Vlad and/or Xi are that stupid. The U.S., for better or worse, is by far the largest consumer market on earth. If they want to destroy the U.S. economy and dollar they are going to destroy THEIR economies as well.


5 posted on 05/09/2025 7:00:27 AM PDT by woweeitsme
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To: dennisw

And restore the de minimus exemption that fuels a lot of US innovation.


6 posted on 05/09/2025 7:38:25 AM PDT by bigbob (Yes. We ARE going back!)
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To: bigbob

“And restore the de minimus exemption that fuels a lot of US innovation.”

And just how, pray tell, does it do that?

ROFL


7 posted on 05/09/2025 3:59:22 PM PDT by BB62
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