President Donald Trump has not been satisfied with progress on the U.S.-China trade deal, and he's disappointed with China's failure to stem fentanyl exports to the United States, and as for now, his order for additional tariffs is standing, White House top economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Friday, while refusing comment on unconfirmed reports that the tariffs could be put on hold.
"I'm not going to fiddle with that," Kudlow told Fox Business' Stuart Varney. "What he put out yesterday is what he put out, and the deadline is Sept. 1."
He added that Trump's tweets were "very respectful and positive" and negotiators are looking forward to continued talks with the Chinese team in early September and continuing negotiations.
Trump on Thursday announced new 10% tariffs on $300 billion in Chinese imports beginning on Sept. 1, to be imposed for a short time, with the possibility of increasing or decreasing them. Later in the day, he said he might raise the tariffs beyond 25% if trade talks with Beijing are still stalled.
Kudlow, though, said he has not heard "anything definitive" about whether the new tariffs could be removed.
There also has been speculation that China could impose martial law on Hong Kong this weekend, but it wouldn't affect U.S.-China trade talks, said Kudlow.
"That's not part of our trade discussions and so forth," he said. "It's a separate item. We want to help freedom-loving people all around the world, so if those reports are true, it would be most regrettable."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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