US and China Agree to Delay Tariff Implementation Until November

JAKARTA - The United States and China agreed on Monday to extend a tariff truce for another 90 days, preventing triple-digit tariffs on Chinese goods as U.S. retailers prepare to increase inventory ahead of the crucial holiday season.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that he had signed an executive order suspending the imposition of higher tariffs until 12:01 a.m. EST on November 10, with all other elements of the truce remaining in effect, Reuters reported on August 12.

China's Ministry of Commerce issued a parallel order on Tuesday morning local time, saying it would adopt and maintain all necessary steps to suspend or eliminate non-tariff measures.

President Trump had earlier on Sunday demanded China double its purchases of U.S. soybeans, but the order did not specify any additional purchases.

"The United States continues discussions with the PRC to address the lack of trade reciprocity in our economic relationship and the national security and economic concerns it raises," Trump's executive order stated.

"Through these discussions, (China) continues to take significant steps to improve the unreciprocal trade arrangements and address the United States' concerns regarding economic and national security issues," he continued.

The original tariff truce between Beijing and Washington expired at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Tuesday. The extension until early November provided crucial time for a surge in fall imports for the Christmas season, including electronics, apparel, and toys, at lower tariffs.

The new order prevents U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods from soaring to 145 percent, while Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods are set at 125 percent—a rate that would have resulted in a virtual trade embargo between the two countries. This policy locks in—at least for now—a 30 percent tariff on Chinese imports, with a 10 percent Chinese duty on U.S. imports.

"We'll see," President Trump said at a press conference on Monday, highlighting what he called his good relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Last week, he told CNBC that the United States and China were moving closer to a trade deal, with a meeting of their leaders likely to take place later this year if a deal is reached.

The two countries announced a ceasefire in their trade dispute in May after talks in Geneva, Switzerland, agreeing to a 90-day period to allow for further negotiations. Delegations from both countries met again in Stockholm, Sweden, in late July, and US negotiators returned to Washington with a recommendation that President Trump extend the deadline.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has repeatedly said that the triple-digit tariffs imposed by both sides on each other's goods in the spring are unsustainable and have essentially imposed a trade embargo between the world's two largest economies.