(CP) WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump suggested Friday he would consider reducing tariffs on Chinese imports to 80%, a significant drop from the current 145% rate but still far above normal trading levels, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent prepares for crucial negotiations with Chinese officials in Switzerland this weekend aimed at easing the escalating trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
“80% Tariff on China seems right! Up to Scott B,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, giving his treasury secretary apparent flexibility in the high-stakes talks while still maintaining pressure on Beijing. The potential reduction, while substantial, would keep tariffs at levels that could severely restrict trade between the USA and China, particularly when compared to the 10% baseline tariff in the U.S.-UK trade agreement announced just one day earlier. Recent shipping data shows a dramatic decline in goods moving from China to American ports, raising concerns about possible product shortages and inflation across the retail map of the USA in coming weeks if the dispute remains unresolved.
China represents a far more complex challenge for the Trump administration than other trading partners due to its massive trade surplus with the United States – in 2024, America exported $143.5 billion in goods to China while importing $438.9 billion, creating an imbalance that has long frustrated Trump. In another social media post Friday, the president emphasized his goal of greater market access, writing “CHINA SHOULD OPEN UP ITS MARKET TO USA — WOULD BE SO GOOD FOR THEM!!! CLOSED MARKETS DON’T WORK ANYMORE!!!” The Switzerland meetings, however, are not expected to produce a comprehensive agreement, with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stating Thursday he hopes merely to establish “stability” that could become “a foundation for something more.”
The president’s willingness to consider lower tariffs marks a potential shift from his position earlier this week when he insisted he would not reduce duties simply to bring China to the negotiating table. The current standoff represents the central challenge in Trump’s broader effort to remake the global trading environment, with the outcomes likely to redraw economic relationships across the international map. Business leaders and investors are closely watching the weekend talks for signs the two countries can pull back from what has become a virtual trade embargo, with both sides currently imposing prohibitive duties exceeding 100% on most imported goods – a situation that threatens supply chains, raises consumer prices, and damages economic growth on both sides of the Pacific.