The White House has indicated that it could lower its tariffs on China, but experts say the exact figures might not make much of a difference.
Right now, the U.S. has 145 per cent blanket tariffs on Chinese goods, while China has a 125 rate on U.S. goods. The levies jumped to those levels earlier this month when both countries were engaged in a tit-for-tat raising of rates.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday during a news conference that tariffs would “come down substantially,” but wouldn’t disappear completely. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, one White House official said the Trump administration was considering cutting the rates from 145 per cent to somewhere between 50 and 65 per cent.
Eric Miller, international trade consultant and president of Rideau Potomac Strategy Group, says those figures are not enough of a decrease to make any real difference.
“While the levels of tariffs …