President Donald Trump revealed that Chinese officials have reached out “a lot” in response to his administration's recent decision to sharply increase tariffs on Chinese imports, and he suggested that a trade deal between the two countries could be reached within weeks.
Speaking to reporters after signing executive orders related to the seafood industry, Trump was asked about the status of negotiations with Chinese officials and whether he had spoken directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping about the ongoing trade standoff.
"They have reached out a number of times," Trump said, referring to Chinese officials. He noted that following his move to nearly triple tariffs on Chinese goods from 54 percent to 145 percent, officials have reached out “a lot.”
While Trump declined to confirm whether he had personally spoken with Xi, he said he considers communication from top Chinese officials to be effectively the same as contact from the Chinese leader himself.
"I view it very similar," Trump responded. "It would be top levels of China, and if you knew [Xi], you would know that if they reached out, he knew exactly – he knew everything about it. He runs it very tight, very strong, very smart. And, yeah, we're talking to China."
The president has indicated that he is unwilling to reach out first to China amid the escalating trade war. According to a report by Fox News, sources close to the president said that US officials have encouraged the Chinese government to initiate a call between Xi and Trump.
Despite the heightened tensions, Trump expressed optimism about the possibility of a resolution, saying there is “plenty” of time to make a deal.
"I would think over the next three or four weeks, I think maybe the whole thing could be concluded," he said.
"At a certain point, if we don't make a deal, we'll just set a limit. We'll set a tariff. We'll set some parameters, and we'll say, 'Come in and shop,'" Trump added. "They always have a right not to do it, so they can say, 'Well, we don't want it, so we're not going to shop there, we're not going to shop in the store of America.' We have something that nobody else has, and that's the American consumer."
