D.C. – A White House official confirmed on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump had signed an executive order extending the tariff truce with China for another 90 days. The extension comes just before the 90-day agreement that slashed tariffs between the two countries temporarily was supposed to end on August 12.
Just hours after President Trump said, “We’ll see what happens,” when reporters asked him about the deadline, he decided to extend the truce. He also praised China’s help with trade talks that are still going on.
In April, the trade problems between the U.S. and China got a lot worse, with both countries putting tariffs of three digits on each other’s goods. The U.S. had put tariffs of 145% on Chinese goods, and China had put tariffs of 125% on U.S. goods in response. During talks in Geneva in May, a truce was achieved that temporarily lowered the duties. The deal cut U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods to 30%. This comprised a 10% base rate and a 20% tax on fentanyl. In response, China cut its duties on imports from the U.S. to 10%.
The deadline has been pushed back to November 10 since negotiations are still going on. In June, officials from both nations met in London, then in late July, they met in Stockholm to talk about trade imbalances, market access, and other concerns that are causing problems. The White House said in a fact sheet that the extension is needed “to facilitate ongoing and productive discussion with China about remedying trade imbalances, unfair trade practices, expanding market access for American exports, and aligning with the United States on national security and economic matters.”
The action gives businesses and markets throughout the world some peace of mind after being worried about the possibility of a fresh trade war. If the extension hadn’t happened, tariffs would have gone back up to the high levels they were at in April, which would have had big effects on the economies of both countries and the world.