(Bloomberg) -- Talks between China and the U.S. aimed at defusing trade tension between the two nations are at risk amid fresh threats from the White House of tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Beijing is considering declining the offer of talks led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the Journal reported, citing officials with knowledge of the discussions, as it isn’t prepared to negotiate with a “gun pointed to its head.” Officials are also considering potential retaliation steps, the report said.
President Donald Trump instructed aides on Thursday to proceed with the additional tariffs on Chinese products despite his Treasury secretary’s attempt to restart talks with Beijing to resolve the trade war, according to four people familiar with the matter.
An announcement of the new round of tariffs has been delayed as the administration considers revisions based on concerns raised in public comments, the people said. Trump may be running low on products he can target without significant backlash from major U.S. companies and consumers, two of the people said.
To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Jeffrey Black in Hong Kong at jblack25@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jeffrey Black at jblack25@bloomberg.net, Chris Bourke, Michael Heath
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