Trump Delays China Tariff Hikes

President Trump

UPDATE below: Donald Trump clashes with his own trade chief in front of Chinese delegation

President Trump has extended a deadline to raise tariffs on Chinese goods beyond this week, citing “substantial progress” in the latest round of trade talks.

In a Twitter posting on Sunday evening he wrote:

The U.S. has made substantial progress in our trade talks with China on important structural issues including intellectual property protection, technology transfer, agriculture, services, currency, and many other issues.As a result of these very productive talks, I will be delaying the U.S. increase in tariffs now scheduled for March 1.
He went on to state that,  "Assuming both sides make additional progress, we will be planning a Summit for President Xi and myself, at Mar-a-Lago, to conclude an agreement."

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin stated that a Mar-a-Lago meeting between the two leaders is being tentatively planned for late March.

RW note: I have no complaints about keeping trade open but the devil will be in the details here, no doubt it is a crony free trade deal that is being negotiated that will benefit some at the expense of others.

No doubt showman Trump will hail any trade deal as the greatest trade deal ever.

UPDATE

Below, President Trump clashes with Robert Lighthizer, his own trade chief, in front of cameras and the Chinese delegation