US Has Spoken to 90 Countries on Trade, Tariffs: Commerce Secretary

โ€˜They all want to make deals,โ€™ President Trump said. โ€˜But theyโ€™re going to be fair deals. Theyโ€™re not going to be rip-off deals.โ€™

The Trump administration has spoken to at least 90 countries to negotiate trade deals after the president recently imposed sweeping baseline and reciprocal tariffs, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on April 23.

During an executive order signing ceremony in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump asked Lutnick how many countries had reached out to broker trade deals. The secretary said 90 U.S. trading partners had contacted the administration so far.

โ€œThey all want to make deals,โ€ the president said. โ€œBut theyโ€™re going to be fair deals. Theyโ€™re not going to be rip-off deals.โ€

Trump told reporters that for countries that fail to reach deals, the administration will set a rate.

โ€œIf we donโ€™t have a deal with a company or country, weโ€™re gonna set the tariff,โ€ the president said. โ€œโ€˜Iโ€™d say, over the next couple of weeks.โ€

When asked if this plan would apply to China, Trump said he may work out a โ€œspecial dealโ€ with Beijing.

โ€œWeโ€™re dealing with a lot of countries right now, and could be with China, but maybe weโ€˜ll make a special deal, and weโ€™ll see what it will be,โ€ he said, adding that his administration has been in contact with China โ€œevery day.โ€

During a Tuesday press briefing, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration was discussing trade deals with 34 countries this week, with 18 proposals already on paper.

After recent reports suggested that Trump was considering lowering tariffs on China unilaterally to de-escalate trade tensions with Beijing as both nations engage in a trade war, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rebutted on Wednesday.

โ€œNot at all,โ€ Bessent said when asked if Trump would lower tariffs on China unilaterally. Bessent was asked about the tariff war with China after a keynote address at an Institute of International Finance event in Washington.

โ€œAs Iโ€™ve said many times, I donโ€™t think either side believes that the current tariff levels are sustainable, so I would not be surprised if they went down in a mutual way,โ€ he added.

The White House also denied reports that Trump is considering a significant reduction in tariffs on Chinese imports.

โ€œPresident Trump has been clear: China needs to make a deal with the United States of America,โ€ White House spokesman Kush Desai told The Epoch Times. โ€œWhen decisions on tariffs are made, they will come directly from the president. Anything else is just pure speculation.โ€

By Jacob Burg

Read Full Article on TheEpochTimes.com

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