China May Cancel Trade Talks If Trump Extends Tariffs

After Trump reached out to China offering trade talks, he then gave the go-ahead for more tariffs. China may back out.

On September 13, the Trump administration reached out to China with an offer for more trade talks.

The WSJ reported the “Trump administration said it sensed a new vulnerability—and possibly more flexibility—among Chinese officials pressured by U.S. tariffs imposed earlier this year and threats for more.”

I inaccurately commented Trump Gets Cold Feet on More Tariffs: US Proposes More Talks With China. My view was similar to the WSJ take.

Trump lashed out.

The Wall Street Journal has it wrong, we are under no pressure to make a deal with China, they are under pressure to make a deal with us. Our markets are surging, theirs are collapsing. We will soon be taking in Billions in Tariffs & making products at home. If we meet, we meet?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 13, 2018

On September 14, I noted Trump Tells Aides to Proceed With $200 Billion in Tariffs on China.

The consensus opinion now is that more tariffs will be announced Monday or Tuesday.

Who’s Bluffing Whom?

Understandably, Beijing is balking at the Trump administration’s pressure tactics as China Weighs Skipping Trade Talks After U.S. Tariff Threat.

Faced with fresh threats of tariffs from Washington, China is considering declining the Trump administration’s offer of trade talks later this month, according to officials with knowledge of the discussions.

The White House plans to announce within the next few days tariffs on as much as $200 billion in Chinese goods, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday, in a move designed to further squeeze Beijing before another round of negotiations proposed by the U.S. The pressure tactics, however, aren’t sitting well with Beijing, which has repeatedly said it wouldn’t negotiate under threat.

“China never said it doesn’t want to negotiate with the U.S.,” Yang Weimin, a former senior economic adviser to President Xi Jinping, said Sunday. “But the U.S. side has to show sincerity” toward resolving the trade dispute. Added a current senior official who advises the leadership on foreign-policy matters: “China is not going to negotiate with a gun pointed to its head.”