China is set to revoke tariffs on 16 types of U.S. products, from Sept. 17 for one year. The announcement came from Beijing on Wednesday, Sept. 11.. President Trump also agreed to postpone the additional U.S. tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods for two weeks, as per Beijing’s request. Last Friday, Beijing announced it would exempt purchases of U.S. soybeans, pork and other agricultural products from punitive tariffs.
Economist David Xia says despite these concessions, China still plans to play the waiting game, dragging negotiations on through the 2020 presidential election.
David Yeliang Xia, Independent Economist, “They don’t want to reform in certain things like the structural reform and a lot of things. Actually, those things should be beneficial to China, but still, China doesn’t want to do it, unless Donald Trump and U.S. government force them to do.”
In the third Democratic primary debate on Sept. 12, the majority of candidates said the that U.S. must be tough on China in trade, and some even agree with Trump’s tariff tactic.
Jeff Ferry, the Chief Economist from the “Coalition For A Prosperous America,” said; “They said tariffs are a valid tactic when you’re dealing with a country like China that doesn’t want to play by international trade rules. So what I see is a broadening sense of support in the United States for ‘Look, we have to get tough with China. China is a big problem for us.'”
White House national security adviser John Bolton, known for his hawkish position, stepped down last Tuesday. Some worry this may lead the Trump administration to soften its stance in the U.S.-China trade war.
Stephen Yates, the Former Deputy National Security Advisor to Vice President Cheney, said; “The broader direction this administration’s been going, from the White House, from the state department, from the defense department, and the both parties in Congress, is one that is much stronger with regard to the challenges and threats that the people’s Republic of China presents. So I think the important lesson going forward is not to focus too much on the personalities, focus more on what’s getting done.”
