FROM EIR DAILY ALERT

President Looks to Success on Trade with China, Puts Off March 1 Deadline

Feb. 25, 2019 (EIRNS)—President Donald Trump made clear on Feb. 24 that he had cancelled the March 1 deadline at which his administration was to raise tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports to 25% unless a trade agreement had been reached. This change appears to apply at least through the planned summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in late March.

After meeting with the Chinese delegation on trade in Washington Feb. 24-25, Trump tweeted:

“I am pleased to report that the U.S. has made substantial progress in our trade talks with China on important structural issues including intellectual property protection, technology transfer, agriculture, services, currency, and many other issues. As a result of these very productive talks, I will be delaying the U.S. increase in tariffs now scheduled for March 1. Assuming both sides make additional progress, we will be planning a Summit for President Xi and myself, at Mar-a-Lago, to conclude an agreement. A very good weekend for U.S. & China!”