Trump Lets Tariff Increase Go Ahead, Threatens More as Trade Talks Resume – The Wall Street Journal
What happened: The US President Donald Trump’s new tariffs on more than $200 billion Chinese imports took effect Friday with tariffs leaping from the current 10% to 25%. The hike on tariffs comes amid two days of trade talks between top US and Chinese negotiators as they look to resolve a year-long trade war between the world’s two largest economies. More than 5,700 categories of goods are subject to the tariffs and most of them are capital and intermediate goods such as circuit boards, microprocessors, vehicle parts, and machinery.
Why it’s important: Under the new tariffs, telecommunications equipment is the top category, with about $19.1 billion of goods facing higher duties. Telecom has become the worst-hit sector in the shadow of the perpetual trade war. Trade conflicts also affect US consumers and businesses. Small carriers in the US feel the brunt as they rely heavily on Chinese telecom equipment makers such as Huawei and ZTE that provide a wide range of gear at competitive prices.