After the president delayed the previously planned March tariff raise indefinitely, many businesses settled into the outlook that negotiations between the U.S. and China were going well. Speculations turned to whether the existing 10% tariffs would remain or be dropped when an agreement was reached. Today’s tweets turned those expectations on their heads.
After the president’s tweets, National Retail Federation Senior Vice President for Government Relations David French said, “Tariffs are taxes paid by American businesses and consumers, not by China.