President Trump said Thursday that he is “under no pressure” to strike a trade deal with China.
“We are under no pressure to make a deal with China, they are under pressure to make a deal with us,” tweeted the president.
The comment appeared aimed at a Wall Street Journal report about Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin offering Beijing a new round of trade talks ahead of plans to hit China with $200 billion more in tariffs.
Mr. Trump said the newspaper got it wrong and his administration was in the catbird seat.
“Our markets are surging, theirs are collapsing. We will soon be taking in Billions in Tariffs & making products at home. If we meet, we meet?” he said in the tweet.
The Trump administration imposed tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods earlier this year. The tariffs are part of a strategy to force China to end unfair trade practices and theft of U.S. intellectual property.
Beijing hasn’t budged but retaliated with $50 billion in tariffs on U.S. goods, and promised further retaliation if the U.S. goes forward with more tariffs.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
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