United States President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that the tariff on Chinese goods won't "be anywhere near" as high as 145%. The current tariff rate "will come down substantially but won't be zero," he explained.
Trump said he would not "play hardball" with China, adding: "we're gonna be very nice. They're gonna be very nice." The president repeated that Beijing will "ultimately have to make a deal" on trade, otherwise China will not be able to conduct business in the US. Other countries would also have to come to terms with Washington, Trump declared during the swearing in ceremony for the new US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins.
"We're the ones that set the deal ... we're gonna be setting the deal and it'll be a fair deal for everybody ... I think it's a process [that] is gonna go quickly," Trump concluded.
