AsianFin -- The U.S. government is leveraging negotiations over tariffs to force trading partners to isolate China, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Credit：China Daily
It was reported the U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wants countries in talks with U.S. to limit China’s involvement in their economies in exchange for concessions on reciprocal tariffs.
U.S. officials reportedly plan to use negotiations with more than 70 nations to ask them to disallow China to ship goods through their countries, prevent Chinese firms from locating in their territories to avoid U.S. tariffs, and not absorb China’s cheap industrial goods into their economies.
U.S. President Donald Trump last Wednesday said he has authorized a 90-day pause and “a substantially lowered reciprocal tariff” of 10% during this period, both effective immediately.
The decision was made because more than 75 countries have reached out to the U.S. to seek a trade deal and these countries have not retaliated against the U.S., Trump posted on his social media Truth Social. In the same post, Trump said he decided to lift tariffs on China to 125% as Beijing on Wednesday announced it ratcheted up tariffs on U.S. to 84% from 34%. “Based on the lack of respect that China has shown to the World’s Markets, I am hereby raising the Tariff charged to China by the United States of America to 125%, effective immediately,” Trump wrote.
Bessent on Tuesday told Yahoo Finance that he was optimistic about clarity on tariffs and progress on key trade deals during the 90-day period of pause on tariffs.
"Let's set aside China. There are 15 large trading partners. We set aside China," Bessent said. “There are 14, and we're in rapid motion and setting up a process for the 14 largest trading partners."
Bessent continued: "I think if we follow the process, we could have substantial clarity on those 14 away from China in terms of agreements in principle. And then once we reach a level that we've agreed on and they've agreed to lower their tariffs, lower their non-tariff barriers, currency manipulation, and subsidies of industry and labor, then I think we can move forward."
