WASHINGTON, Sept. 29 (Nationwide Times) — The United States and China have identified about $30 billion in goods moving in each direction for possible tariff relief, a step that could affect farmers, manufacturers and importers. It is not a tariff cut yet: Neither government has announced final rates or when any changes would take effect.
The White House said the two countries reached consensus on recommendations for more favorable treatment of nonsensitive goods after a summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. China’s Ministry of Commerce described the plan as a framework the two sides would discuss with the aim of reaching an agreement.
The proposed lists show where that discussion could matter to businesses. They cover 1,619 categories of U.S. goods entering China, including farm products, timber, medical equipment and coal, and 77 categories of Chinese goods entering the United States, including fireworks and Christmas ornaments. The roughly $30 billion figures describe the value of goods under consideration on each side, not the value of tariff savings.
China’s Ministry of Commerce said tariff rates on more than 90% of the products would be subject to most-favored-nation levels. That statement does not establish what an importer would pay on each product or which products would ultimately qualify.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said farmers, manufacturers, businesses, workers and consumers could benefit. For those groups, the difference between a product list and an implemented tariff cut is central: The listed goods identify potential beneficiaries, while the final rates, eligibility rules and start date would determine the financial effect.
