Trade Tariffs

China’s Commerce Ministry says reports that China plans to engage with the US on trade are true.

China adds that “talks must be equitable and mutually beneficial.”

https://x.com/Jukanlosreve/status/1919884632230920629
https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1919883606819840359

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President Trump said he won’t lower tariffs on China so as to facilitate trade negotiations.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-07/trump-says-he-won-t-lower-china-tariffs-to-jump-start-talks

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S&P 500 futures rose 1.1% after Trump announced that they have made a comprehensive trade deal with the UK

  • Trump said they have made a trade deal with the UK

  • He said more details on the deal will come at 10 am ET.
  • S&P 500 futures rose 1.1% while Nasdaq-100 futures gained 1.4% following Trump’s announcement.

Are are a bit more insights from GPT. Not 100% if accurate and up to date. Getting some small overviews of what are the outcomes of tariffs negotiations would be cool to understand better into which direction the world and particularly the united states is moving with tariffs.

GPT

Yes, the terms of recent U.S. trade agreements, particularly the newly announced U.S.–UK trade deal, have been made public and offer insight into the concessions achieved by both sides.

U.S.–UK Trade Agreement (Announced May 8, 2025)

This agreement is the first major trade pact signed by President Donald Trump in his second term and is considered a significant diplomatic win for both nations.(Financial Times)

Key U.S. Gains:

  • Tariff Reductions: The U.S. secured reductions in the UK’s digital services tax, benefiting American tech companies like Amazon and Meta. (Business Insider)

  • Market Access: The deal includes provisions for increased U.S. access to the UK market for certain goods, although specific sectors were not detailed in the available sources.(AP News)

UK Concessions:

  • Tariff Relief: The UK obtained relief from the 25% U.S. tariffs on key exports such as steel, aluminum, and automobiles, which are vital to the British economy. (Business Insider)

  • Standards Maintenance: The UK maintained its stringent food safety standards, refusing to allow imports of chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-treated beef, thereby preserving its regulatory alignment with the EU. (AP News)

Other Trade Negotiations

  • U.S.–Japan Talks: Recent negotiations between the U.S. and Japan have seen limited progress, with the U.S. showing reluctance to reduce tariffs on automobiles, steel, and aluminum. (Reuters)

  • U.S.–India Discussions: India has proposed significant tariff reductions on U.S. imports, including a “zero-for-zero” tariff on auto parts, in exchange for relief from U.S. tariffs. (Wikipedia)

Summary

The recent U.S.–UK trade agreement demonstrates a strategic balance, with both nations achieving key objectives: the U.S. gained concessions on digital services taxation and market access, while the UK secured tariff relief for critical exports and upheld its regulatory standards. Other ongoing negotiations, such as those with Japan and India, indicate a continued U.S. focus on leveraging tariffs to negotiate favorable trade terms.(Financial Times)

For more detailed information on existing U.S. trade agreements, you can visit the U.S. Department of State’s trade agreements page.

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A 10% baseline tariff on UK will remain

  • A 10% tariff will remain on UK, according to a graphic posted by President Trump.

  • Trump said further details are being worked on.

  • Trump signaled that future deals might get a larger tariff rate.

    “That’s a low number.” “They made a good deal,” Trump said of the UK. “Some will be much higher because they have massive trade surpluses.”

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One of the most important things I take from this trade deal with the UK is this quote from Trump:

  • 10% base rate for UK not a template for other countries; template of 10% is probably the lowest end
  • 10% tariff set for U.K. is ‘low number,’ will be higher for other countries

So, It seems 10% baseline tariffs are indeed the floor for most imports, with potentially higher tariffs for some countries or sectors. The market has been celebrating this positive trade deal news, but a 10% baseline tariff is still ~410 billion headwind, a ~1.4% of GDP, 2% of spending, and 12% of profits.

I still expect this if is indeed the case to be a significant headwind to the economy (but for sure much less than previous numbers), and growth to come close to zero or even negative for some quarters later in the year or early 2026 (meaning at this point I only expect a shallow recession, not a full blown recession), which it seems to me is something the market is currently ignoring (earnings still expected to be 9% in 2025 and 13.5% in 2026)

As a reference also, the US has a trade surplus with the UK of 11B, so this was probably an easier trade deal, where Trump could make more concessions. China,the EU, and Japan are probably not as easy where there is significant trade deficits.

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Trump floated 80% tariff on China ahead of the Saturday negotiations, adding that China should do more to open their market for US goods

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Trump said “many trade deals” are close

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US and China made “substantial progress” in trade talks, Bessent said

  • Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said US and China made “substantial progress” in their trade talks.
  • He added that they will share more details on Monday.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-11/us-china-made-substantial-progress-in-trade-talks-bessent-says

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US will lower tariffs on China to 30% while China will reduce tariffs on US to 10%

  • US will lower China tariffs to 30% for 90 days, starting from May 14 while China will lower their tariffs on US goods to 10%, officials from the two countries announced in Geneva.
  • The White House called it “trade deal” on Sunday but history indicates that the talks could take longer than expected to be concluded. For instance, their trade dispute in 2018 took more than 18 months to be concluded.
  • S&P 500 futures is up 2.8% while Nasdaq 100 futures is up 3.6% following the report.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-12/us-and-china-agree-to-major-reductions-in-tariffs-for-90-days

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Trump recommends 50% tariff on the EU, saying they are difficult to deal with

  • President Trump recommends 50% tariff on the EU starting on June 1 2025, saying they are difficult to deal with.

  • S&P 500 futures shed 1.5%, Nasdaq 100 lost 1.8% while DAX dropped 2.3% following the announcement.

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Trump said he is delaying the start of 50% EU tariffs to July 9 from June 1

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A federal court ruled that Trump’s reciprocal tariffs are unlawful, orders its cancellations and bars its future modifications

  • A federal trade court ruled that Trump’s reciprocal tariffs are unlawful.

  • The court ordered a halt to the reciprocal tariffs and barred any future modifications to them.

  • Trump’s administration was given 10 days to make the necessary modifications to carry out the court’s orders.

    “The Worldwide and Retaliatory Tariff Orders exceed any authority granted to the President by IEEPA to regulate importation by means of tariffs,” the judges wrote.

  • The White House said it will appeal the decision.

  • If the decision is upheld, the 30% tariff on China goods, 25% tariff on Mexico, and Canada goods, and 10% tariff on goods from other countries will be cancelled.

  • Aside from an appeal, analysts said there are other laws that Trump could use to pursue his agenda such as section 122 which enables him to impose up to 15% tariff across the board for six months, after which he would need a congressional approval to extend them.

  • Section 301 enables the administration to launch investigations on unfair trade practices and impose unlimited tariffs. This requires a probe and public comment which could take months.

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  • Trump’s administration said it may ask the U.S. Supreme Court as early as Friday to halt yesterday’s court ruling that said the reciprocal tariffs are illegal.
  • It said it will only do so if the court of appeals doesn’t issue an injunction.

Appeals court granted Trump’s tariffs a temporary relief following trade court ruling

  • A U.S. Court of appeals temporarily paused the trade court ruling that struck down Trump’s reciprocal tariffs.

    “The request for an immediate administrative stay is granted to the extent that the judgments and the permanent injunctions entered by the Court of International Trade in these cases are temporarily stayed until further notice while this court considers the motions papers,” the court of appeals said.

  • Trump administration already said if they lose they will find another way to impose the tariffs.

    “Even if we lose, we will do it another way,” Trump trade advisor Peter Navarro told reporters.

Trump said China has violated trade agreement, Bessent said talks are a 'bit stalled"

  • Trump said China violated its trade agreement with US.

  • This comes after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News that talks with “are a bit stalled”, requiring Xi Jinping and Trump to speak directly.

  • S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures slid 0.6% following the report.

Trump considers imposing 15% tariff across the board for 150 days and then using Section 301 to impose unlimited tariffs

  • Trump’s administration is now considering using Section 122 of the 1974 trade law, and then Section 301, following the trade court ruling, the Wall Street Journal reported citing people close to the discussions.
  • Section 122 allows the administration to impose up to 15% tariff across the board for 150 days while Section 301 enables the administration to launch investigations on unfair trade practices and impose unlimited tariffs.
  • Some experts believe that using these sections is like admitting to the appeals court that the trade court ruling was right.

Trump’s Team Plots Plan B for Imposing Tariffs

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