Decision on new tariffs for China after G20 says Donald Trump

Caen, June 7: US President Donald Trump said that he would wait until after a G20 meeting in Japan at the end of the month before deciding whether to impose new tariffs on Chinese goods that could be worth USD 325 billion.

"Additional tariffs on China? You mean, when am I going to put the extra USD 325 billion worth of tariffs?" Trump said on his trip to northern France in response to a question from a reporter about when the new tariffs were coming.

"I will make that decision over the next two weeks, probably right after the G20," Trump said, adding that he would hold talks with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at the summit in Osaka on June 28-29.

"One way or the other I will make that decision after the G20," Trump added. "I will be meeting with President Xi (at the summit) and we'll see what happens."

Trump began imposing tariffs on Chinese imports last year in a bid to reduce the US trade deficit and force Beijing to undertake economic reforms.

He accuses Beijing of seeking to dominate global industries with unfair state subsidies and of acquiring American technology through theft or forced transfers.

Since Trump fired the first shot, the two countries have implemented tit-for-tat tariffs on two-way trade worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

China this month hit USD 60 billion worth of US goods with new punitive tariffs ranging from five to 25 per cent, in retaliation for Washington raising duties on USD 200 billion in Chinese goods to 25 per cent.