President Trump, whose commerce battle with China has rattled monetary markets and threatened to disrupt enormous swaths of commerce, advised on Friday that he had been in contact with Xi Jinping, China’s president, whilst Chinese language officers insisted that no negotiations had been occurring.
In an interview with Time on Tuesday, Mr. Trump mentioned Mr. Xi had known as him, although he declined to say when, and asserted that his group was in energetic talks with China on a commerce deal. Requested concerning the interview outdoors the White Home on Friday morning, the president reiterated that he had spoken with the Chinese language president “quite a few instances,” however he refused to reply when pressed on whether or not any name had occurred after he imposed tariffs this month.
Mr. Trump’s feedback appeared geared toward creating the impression of progress with China to appease jittery monetary markets, which have fallen amid indicators that the world’s largest economies are in a standoff. The S&P 500 is down 10 % since Mr. Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
However the president’s claims of talks have been rejected by Chinese language officers, who’ve repeatedly denied this week that they’re actively negotiating with the USA.
“China and the U.S. haven’t held consultations or negotiations on the problem of tariffs,” Guo Jiakun, the spokesman for China’s international ministry, mentioned in a information convention on Friday. “The US shouldn’t confuse the general public.”
Chinese language officers have repeatedly mentioned the USA ought to cease threatening China and interact in dialogue on the idea of equality and respect. On Thursday, He Yadong, a spokesman for China’s Commerce Ministry, mentioned there have been “no financial and commerce negotiations between China and the USA.”
“Any claims about progress in China-U.S. financial and commerce negotiations are baseless rumors with out factual proof,” he mentioned. The Chinese language Embassy in Washington declined to touch upon Friday, and White Home spokespeople didn’t reply to a request for remark.
Mr. Trump ratcheted up tariffs on Chinese language imports to a minimum of 145 percent this month, in a bid to drive China into commerce negotiations. However Chinese language officers responded by issuing their own tariffs on American products and clamping down on exports to the USA of minerals and magnets which can be crucial for a lot of industries, together with the protection sector.
The Chinese language additionally seem to have ignored Mr. Trump’s recommendations that one of the simplest ways to resolve the problem could be for Mr. Xi to get in contact with him instantly. With the 2 governments at an deadlock, companies that depend on sourcing merchandise from China — various from {hardware} shops to toymakers — have been thrown into turmoil. The triple-digit tariff charges have pressured many to halt shipments totally.
Trump officers have admitted that the established order with China on commerce will not be sustainable, and a few have considered paring back U.S. levies on the nation. However the White Home insists it is not going to do this until a deal is reached for China to do the identical.
Requested within the Time interview if he would name Mr. Xi if the Chinese language chief didn’t name first, Mr. Trump mentioned no.
“We’re assembly with China,” he mentioned. “We’re doing effective with all people.”
Mr. Trump additionally mentioned, with out proof, that he had “made 200 offers.” He claimed that he would end and announce them within the subsequent three to 4 weeks.
Mr. Trump introduced greater “reciprocal” tariffs on almost 60 international locations at first of April. The White Home has since mentioned it obtained requests from dozens of nations to barter commerce phrases, and Peter Navarro, the White Home commerce adviser, has mentioned the administration would strike “90 offers in 90 days.”
Karoline Leavitt, the White Home press secretary, mentioned this week that the Trump administration had obtained 18 proposals on paper and that the commerce group was “assembly with 34 international locations this week alone.”
However many commerce consultants have expressed skepticism, provided that previous U.S. commerce offers have taken on common over a year to negotiate.
The president informed Time that commerce with international locations like China had been unfair and wanted to be modified. “You possibly can’t allow them to make a trillion {dollars} from us,” he mentioned.
Mr. Trump mentioned he would look individually at firms looking for exemptions from tariffs. He additionally mentioned he had an inventory of merchandise that will be effective to import. “There are some merchandise I actually don’t need to make right here,” he mentioned.
However Mr. Trump insisted that tariffs had been encouraging firms to maneuver again to the USA, and that he would take into account having excessive tariffs a yr from now “a complete victory” as a result of the nation could be “making a fortune.”
“It is a super success,” he mentioned. “You simply don’t understand it but.”
In public, Mr. Trump has been saying that his tariffs are figuring out effectively, that international locations are coming to him begging for offers and that all the pieces will work out superbly for the American folks.
In personal, the president’s group has been much less cheery. Main retailers have briefed Mr. Trump on their expectations for empty retailer cabinets if his tariffs are stored in place. His prime financial advisers, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, had been so alarmed by the sell-off within the bond markets, and the potential for a widespread monetary panic, that they urged Mr. Trump to place a 90-day pause on his reciprocal tariffs two weeks in the past.
Since then, his group has targeted on easy methods to de-escalate his commerce battle with China with out showing to have capitulated.
Mr. Trump and a few of his advisers believed that the Chinese language financial system could be extremely susceptible to U.S. tariffs, given the nation’s dependence on exporting to the USA. However they seem to have misunderstood the extent of the president’s leverage over Mr. Xi.
Chinese language officers have made clear, by their statements to the information media, that they haven’t appreciated the bullying tone from Mr. Trump and that any negotiations must be run by a proper course of.
Beijing has additionally fastidiously censored and curated info in China concerning the commerce battle, and emphasised the nation’s resilience and ability to withstand pain.
Mr. Trump, in the meantime, has seen his ballot numbers drop. His approval score on the financial system — all the time a energy for him — has now turn into a weak point. Republican lawmakers worry a wipeout within the 2026 midterms, compounding the stress on Mr. Trump to make offers that can restore a way of financial well-being.
Eswar Prasad, a professor of commerce coverage at Cornell College and the previous head of the China division for the Worldwide Financial Fund, mentioned each international locations appeared to acknowledge the necessity to start negotiations however every needed to provoke them on their very own phrases.
“The narrative in Beijing appears to have shifted in latest days, with policymakers there stiffening their backs and feeling that they will trip this out,” he mentioned. “Their notion appears to be that the Trump group will come to them because the U.S. financial system is struggling proportionately extra harm from the escalating commerce battle.”
