Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stated on Sunday that President Trump wouldn’t grant any additional extensions to international locations wishing to barter commerce offers forward of the Aug. 1 deadline.
“No extensions, no extra grace intervals. Aug. 1, the tariffs are set,” Lutnick stated in an interview on “Fox Information Sunday.”
“They will go into place, customs will begin amassing the cash, and off we go,” Lutnick continued.
Lutnick added, nonetheless, that the president could be open to persevering with to barter even as soon as the tariffs are in place.
“Clearly after Aug. 1, individuals can nonetheless speak to President Trump,” Lutnick stated. “I imply, he is at all times keen to pay attention.”
The president will even proceed to speak to different international locations earlier than the Aug. 1 deadline, Lutnick added.
“Whether or not they could make him comfortable is one other query,” Lutnick stated. “However the president’s positively keen to barter and speak to the massive economies for certain.”
The interview got here shortly earlier than Trump announced a trade deal with the European Union, setting tariffs at 15 p.c for European items, together with vehicles.
The EU agreed to buy $750 billion price of vitality from the U.S. as a part of the deal, Trump introduced on Sunday, and to spend money on the U.S. $600 billion greater than the present investments for different items.
The settlement is decrease than the 30 p.c tariff Trump had threatened to impose on the EU, which was set to take impact on Aug. 1, and avoids a commerce conflict with the U.S.’s largest buying and selling companion.
Trump earlier this month posted letters to social media despatched to greater than a dozen international locations vowing to impose steep tariffs on their imports beginning Aug. 1.
An preliminary spherical of tariffs unveiled in April was paused for 90 days to permit time for negotiations, and the president then pushed the deadline for the tariffs to take impact again by one other few weeks — to Aug. 1.