President Trump said in an interview on Sunday that he was unwilling to reach an agreement with China unless the more than 1 trillion US dollar trade deficit issue was first resolved. Trump told reporters during an interview on Air Force One that the trade deficit with some countries exceeded 1 billion US dollars, but the trade deficit with China exceeded "1 trillion US dollars".

Trump said, "We have a 1 trillion US dollar trade deficit with China. We lose thousands of billions of dollars to China every year. Unless we solve this problem, I will not reach an agreement with them. I am willing to reach an agreement with China, but they must resolve the surplus issue. We have a huge deficit problem with China... I hope this issue will be resolved."

Trump also claimed that tariffs have led to 7 trillion US dollars in promised investment in building car manufacturing plants, chip companies, and other types of businesses in the United States, "reaching levels we have never seen before." However, regarding the trade deficit, Trump stated that he had discussed it with many leaders in Europe and Asia, who were "very eager" to reach an agreement, but emphasized that as long as there is a deficit, he himself would not agree to an agreement.

Trump told reporters, "Deficits are losses. We will have a surplus, or at worst, break-even. But China is the worst among these countries because the deficit is too large and unsustainable." Trump continued, "This is how I got elected." Trump talked with the media for about 16 minutes on Air Force One, during which reporters asked him many questions about tariffs.

Trump estimated that by next year, tariffs would bring an additional 1 trillion US dollars in revenue. He also said that companies would begin relocating to places like North Carolina, Detroit, and Illinois.

Trump said, "What changes will happen in the market? I can't tell you. But I can tell you that our country has become much stronger, and it will eventually become a unique country in the world, economically becoming the most dominant nation, which is what it should be."

On Sunday evening, Trump once again expressed his views on tariffs on the social platform "Truth Social." He wrote, "We have huge fiscal deficits with China, the European Union, and many other countries. The only way to solve this problem is through tariffs, which have already brought the United States hundreds of billions of US dollars in revenue. These measures have begun to take effect and look very good."

Trump criticized the increasing trade deficits with these countries during his predecessor Biden's term and said, "We must reverse this situation, and quickly reverse it. One day, people will realize that tariffs are a very good thing for the United States!"

Last Wednesday, Trump announced a benchmark tariff of 10% on all imports into the United States, while imposing higher tariffs on some countries, with the "reciprocal tariff" rate for China reaching 34%. In response, China announced that starting April 10, it would impose a 34% tariff on all imported goods from the United States based on the current applicable tariff rate, which is equivalent to the "reciprocal tariff" level imposed by Trump on Chinese products.

Source: rfi

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7490607928118870579/

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