The Trump administration is considering slashing its steep tariffs on Chinese imports—in some cases by more than half—in a bid to de-escalate tensions with Beijing that have roiled global trade and investment, according to people familiar with the matter.

President Trump hasn’t made a final determination, the people said, adding that the discussions remain fluid and several options are on the table.

One senior White House official said the China tariffs were likely to come down to between roughly 50% and 65%. The administration is also considering a tiered approach similar to the one proposed by the House committee on China late last year: 35% levies for items the U.S. deems not a threat to national security, and at least 100% for items deemed as strategic to America’s interest, some of the people said. The bill proposed phasing in those levies over five years.

“President Trump has been clear: China needs to make a deal with the United States of America. When decisions on tariffs are made, they will come directly from the President. Anything else is just pure speculation,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said.

Trump said Tuesday he was willing to cut tariffs on Chinese goods, saying the 145% tariffs he imposed on China during his second term would come down. “But it won’t be zero,” he said. The development was welcome news to investors who had been spooked by the White House’s aggressive moves in recent weeks.

China on Wednesday signaled it was open to trade talks with the U.S., though Beijing warned it wouldn’t negotiate under continued threats from the White House. In China’s policymaking circles, Trump’s comments Tuesday were viewed as a sign of him folding, people who consult with Chinese officials said.

The expressions of openness to a deal from both sides represent a shift from much of the past month, as the world’s two largest economies exchanged reciprocal tariff increases and testy words, helping push stock markets around the world to their worst weeks in many years.

The administration had planned to use continuing tariff negotiations to pressure U.S. trading partners to limit their dealings with China, The Wall Street Journal previously reported. Still, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said there is room for talks on a potential trade deal between the U.S. and China. Such talks would have to involve Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, though the two haven’t talked since Trump regained the White House.

Write to Gavin Bade at gavin.bade@wsj.com, Lingling Wei at Lingling.Wei@wsj.com and Josh Dawsey at Joshua.Dawsey@WSJ.com

https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/white-house-considers-slashing-china-tariffs-to-de-escalate-trade-war-6f875d69?mod=WSJ_home_mediumtopper_pos_1

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5715008&forum_id=2Elisa#48873501)

"Oh our tariffs are too high and China didnt call yet- I will cut the tariffs in half and see if China wants a deal then"

"OK China here's the deal, promise to buy some American soybeans and I'll drop all my tariffs"

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5715008&forum_id=2Elisa#48873540)