US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he would not lower tariffs on imports from China to kick-start trade talks with Beijing in high-level talks scheduled to take place soon in Switzerland, while his Commerce Department said it would simplify some restrictions on the export of advanced semiconductor chips to the country.
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Responding “no” when asked by media whether he was open to pulling back the levies to pave the way for the negotiations, Trump also said stopping fentanyl from entering America would be “a very big part” of the dialogue led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
Trump made his remarks during the swearing-in ceremony for David Perdue, the new US ambassador to China, shortly after Bessent told the House Financial Services Committee that he had signed an order “identifying Chinese entities who are engaged in the fentanyl trade”, with the list set to be made public “within the next few days”.
Bessent’s testimony suggested the release could come shortly before, after or even overlap with the coming US-China trade talks, which he and Greer are scheduled to attend this weekend.
In February, Bessent held a call with China’s top economic official, Vice-Premier He Lifeng, whom the Chinese foreign ministry said on Wednesday would visit Switzerland from May 9 to 12.
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Separately on Wednesday, a Commerce Department spokesperson said the Export Control Framework for AI Diffusion would be rescinded in favour of “a much simpler rule”.