The US Chamber of Commerce on Thursday urged US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to withdraw new tariffs to start tomorrow and return to talks in good faith to end their trade dispute.
“At this moment of uncertainty, it is critical that our leaders take decisive steps to bolster the economy and avoid actions that could turn talk of recession into reality,” US Chamber of Commerce chief executive officer Thomas Donohue said in a Washington Post opinion piece.
Donohue’s call for a tariff truce and resumption of negotiations between the US and China comes as the world’s two largest economies are set to impose new duties on each other’s exports.
The US is starting a 15 percent tariff on about US$110 billion in apparel, footwear and other Chinese imports tomorrow, with duties on the balance of about US$300 billion in toys, phones and laptops and other products delayed until Dec. 15. Trump is also increasing the duty rate already in effect on US$250 billion in other Chinese goods to 30 percent from 25 percent starting on Oct. 1, the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
China has vowed additional tariffs on US$75 billion of US goods, including soybeans, automobiles and oil, with some taking effect tomorrow and the rest on Dec. 15.
Trump said on Thursday that the two nations are to have a conversation about trade after signs from China that it would not immediately retaliate against the latest US moves and wants to focus on removing new duties.
A US Chamber of Commerce survey of 138 recent earnings calls of Fortune 500 companies showed that executives are “overwhelmingly concerned about the economic impact of tariffs,” Donohue wrote.
That has led to companies sitting on cash and the first decline in business investment in three years, he wrote.
While the business community shares the Trump administration’s concern over China’s trade and industrial practices, the escalation of trade tensions does not increase the likelihood of a deal and risks a recession, Donohue wrote.
“That’s why we believe Trump and Xi should withdraw the tariffs scheduled to take effect this weekend — and then again in December — and instead restart their negotiations,” Donohue wrote.
“Just as growth is not guaranteed, neither is a recession. Both result from the choices we make,” he wrote.
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