U.S. President Donald Trump is 'perfectly happy’ to hit China with new tariffs if his upcoming face-to-face with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month does not go well... says his treasury secretary.
Steven Mnuchin's remarks come as China has reportedly warned global tech giants - including Samsung and SK Hynix - against cooperating with Washington's blacklist of Huawei.
Kim Mok-yeon has the details.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has reiterated that President Trump will decide whether to hit China with more tariffs after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 world leader's summit in Japan later this month.
Speaking to American cable network CNBC on Sunday, Mnuchin said Trump will try to determine if his Chinese counterpart is willing to head towards what he calls the "right direction" to reshape the two sides' trade and commercial relationship.
Mnuchin added Washington is prepared to move forward with a deal, but if China is unwilling to do so, President Trump would be "perfectly happy" to impose more tariffs to "re-balance the relationship".
Trump has already imposed 25 percent tariffs on 200 billion U.S. dollars worth of Chinese goods, but is now weighing whether to impose new tariffs on other Chinese products worth 325 billion dollars.
China is gearing up to protect its companies in the aftermath of Washington's efforts to invite its allies to join the U.S. blacklisting of Huawei.
According to the New York Times, the Chinese government has warned global tech giants that they could face "dire consequences" if they cooperate with the Trump administration's ban on sales of key American technology to Chinese firms.
The meetings were reportedly held on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, involving Microsoft and Dell, Britain's ARM, and South Korea's Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
Representatives of the companies mentioned in the New York Times have yet to confirm the report.
Kim Mok-yeon, Arirang News.