WASHINGTON — The White House, seeking to ratchet up pressure on Beijing and prod China into further negotiations, said it would consider more than doubling its proposed tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods to 25%.
The move Wednesday came as talks between Beijing and Washington have stalled, and Washington is looking for additional leverage. In a Monday White House meeting, Trump dismissed a proposed 10% China tariff as weak, said people familiar with the discussions, and had them bump up the levy to 25%.
Senior administration officials said they would ask for industry comments on a 10% tariff and a 25% tariff. A final decision on the rate isn’t expected until September at the earliest.
U.S. officials are confident that they have the upper hand in the trade fight with China because the U.S. economy is gathering strength while the Chinese economy shows signs of weakening and is more dependent on trade than the U.S.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
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