US President Joe Biden on Saturday said he would be talking to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) “soon,” and is weighing possible action on US tariffs on China that were imposed by the administration of former US president Donald Trump.
Asked whether he had decided to lift any of the tariffs, Biden said: “We’re in the process of doing that... I’m in the process of making up my mind.”
Biden’s administration is weighing what to do about Trump’s tariffs on about US$300 billion of goods imported from the US economy’s biggest competitor. While some businesses have benefited from protection from Chinese imports, companies that use the goods as inputs in areas including manufacturing have been hurt.
Photo: AFP
US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen last week told lawmakers that the Biden administration is looking to “reconfigure” the tariffs and said that they were contributing to higher prices for goods with US inflation running at the hottest pace in 40 years.
Biden declined to say when he would talk to Xi, saying only: “I’m going to be talking to him.”
US officials are working to set up a possible call this summer as tensions run high between the world’s two biggest economies, including on Taiwan, Ukraine and human rights matters.
One person familiar with planning said a potential summer call could come as soon as next month, but any in-person meeting of the two leaders would wait until after the China’s National Party Congress later in the year.
Xi, who is seeking to secure a third term, has also halted international travel since COVID-19 emerged more than two years ago.
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
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