Trump to decide on next China tariffs after G20 summit

US President Donald Trump said China wanted a deal and predicted the two sides would definitely reach an agreement. (Reuters pic)

FRANCE: US President Donald Trump said he’ll decide whether to enact tariffs on another US$325 billion in Chinese imports after the Group of 20 summit at the end of the month in Japan, where he’s expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“I will make that decision after the G20,” Trump told reporters at a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Caen, France, on Thursday. “I’ll be meeting with President Xi and we’ll see what happens but probably planning it sometime after G20.”

US and Chinese negotiators hit an impasse in trade talks last month, which Trump said happened because Beijing reneged on provisions of a tentative deal.

He raised tariffs on about US$200 billion in Chinese imports to 25% in response, and at the time hung out the possibility of further action.

China has blamed the US for the breakdown in talks and vowed to reciprocate for the increased tariffs in various ways.

In a Fox News interview taped Thursday, Trump said China wanted a deal and predicted the two sides would “definitely” reach an agreement.

“I will say, I want to get a deal but what they did was very bad,” he told host Laura Ingraham. “We had a deal, and they tried to renegotiate. They can’t do that.”