Investors are once again concerned about tariffs, as President Trump hints at escalating his trade war and companies report the growing impact of these duties on their finances.
Trump, who has no plans to speak with China’s President Xi Jinping, suggested in a weekend TV interview that his administration may consider easing the heavy 145% tariffs on Chinese imports.
“At some point, I’m going to lower them, because otherwise, you could never do business with them, and they want to do business very much,” Trump said on NBC’s Meet the Press.
Earlier this week, there was some optimism over a potential reduction in US-China trade tensions. Beijing said it was reviewing proposals from US officials to open talks on tariff issues. China is also reportedly preparing a list of US goods to be exempted from its 125% tariffs, in an effort to ease trade tensions without making public concessions.
Trump has defended the high tariffs on Chinese goods, stating that China “deserves it” and will likely bear the costs. However, these remarks seem at odds with ongoing discussions within his administration about reducing tariffs and resuming trade talks.
Additionally, Trump hinted that pharmaceutical imports could be the next target for tariffs. On Monday, he stated that he would determine those rates in the coming weeks. The pharmaceutical sector is already feeling the effects of existing tariffs, with companies like Ford (F) pulling their financial guidance and warning of significant impacts on their businesses.
In another development, Trump threatened on Sunday to impose a 100% tariff on foreign-made movies, though he did not provide specifics. This news caused a dip in media stocks, including Netflix (NFLX), which saw a drop in share prices on Monday.
On Tuesday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to visit the White House for trade talks, following his recent electoral victory where he campaigned with strong anti-Trump rhetoric.
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