Amid global market turmoil, U.S. President Trump on Friday hinted at possible exemptions to his tariff regime that he could offer some countries, stressing that 10 percent was the baseline.
“There could be a couple of exceptions for obvious reasons, but I would say 10 percent is a floor,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on his way to Florida. He didn’t elaborate on what the “obvious reasons” were.
Trump’s comments came after his trade policies sent stock markets gyrating in recent days. The president put higher tariffs on dozens of countries, only to delay them hours later by 90 days after seeing financial markets convulse in fear that the new import duties could harm the global economy.
Saying the U.S. was in “great shape,” Trump emphasized the success of his trade policies, explaining that he brought down the tariffs to 10 percent because he “wanted to be fair to other people, other countries.”
When asked about the trade war with China, Trump called Chinese President Xi Jinping “a very good leader, a very smart leader,” adding that “something positive is going to come.”
Beijing on Friday raised tariffs on all U.S. goods to 125 percent, echoing a move by the White House that increased duties on Chinese imports to the same level, in addition to an existing 20 percent levy.
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