US Chamber CEO Predicts No Tariffs Will Come Off Chinese Goods Unless Substantive Deal Reached

U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Tom Donohue said he doesn't believe that the Trump administration will declare victory if Chinese buyers return to buying pork, soybeans and corn. "I don't think it will be an agreement of any type until it's a matter of substance," he said.

"I don't think you're going to see the tariffs going away and people feeling that we've made a great accomplishment until we have a real agreement. And a real agreement, in my opinion, will not be buying more crops and doing the small things," Donohue said at a press conference Sept. 16, "That would be good to set the stage for us to have more substantive conversations."

But Donohue also warned that his views should be taken with a grain of salt. He said, "Sometimes when I talk about it publicly, I'm trying to lean people in the right direction."

The Chamber's leader had just talked with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer before holding the press conference. Donohue emphasized repeatedly that reaching a deal wouldn't be easy. "This is going to take a while to get done," he said, even though Lighthizer had told him it looked like China might make some agricultural purchases soon. The USTR told Donohue that mid-level staff will meet Sept. 20 for negotiations, and that he and the vice premier might come together a week or so after that.

"He laid it out by saying, 'You know, this is an extraordinary challenge,'" Donohue said. Back in May, "They were very, very close to a workable agreement." He did not say whether Lighthizer had secured China's assent to return to where they had been before the breakdown in talks in May. Officials from the Chamber visited China last week, and Donohue said reforming state subsidies and opening China's economy is important for that country's success, not just important to American businesses competing with Chinese companies.