US 'Highly Unlikely' to Avoid Jan. 1 Tariff Increase to 25 Percent on Chinese Goods, Trump Says

It’s “highly unlikely” that President Donald Trump will suspend or delay an increase in Section 301 tariffs from 10 percent to 25 percent set to take effect Jan. 1, he said in a Nov. 26 interview with The Wall Street Journal. Trump said he’s “very happy with what’s going on right now” with more tariffs on deck. Tariffs might even be coming on consumer products like iPhones and laptops, Trump said. “I can make it 10 percent and people could stand that very easily.” Trump advised U.S. companies “to build factories in the United States and to make the product here.” China should “make a fair deal” where it opens itself to competition, he said. “They have to open up China to the United States. Otherwise, I don’t see a deal being made. And if it’s not made, we will be taking in billions and billions of dollars,” he said. “I happen to be a tariff person,” he said earlier in the interview.