No change in US tariff policy for now, says Trump trade rep

WASHINGTON: The US will not make any changes to its tariff policy in the near future, President Donald Trump’s trade representative has told senators, warning that some economic pain for businesses will be necessary to bring manufacturing jobs back to the country.

During a sometimes tense US Senate Finance Committee hearing, Greer said higher across-the-board tariff rates on 57 trading partners – from the European Union to China and Brazil – would take effect at 12:01am on Wednesday, just days after a 10% tariff was imposed on all other countries.

“The president has been clear, again, that he’s not doing exemptions or exceptions in the near term,” Greer said.

Past tariff carve-outs created a “Swiss cheese” approach, full of holes, that failed to slow the growth of a $1.2 trillion US trade deficit, he said.

Talks on trade barriers

The Trump administration is negotiating with more than 50 countries, but Greer said that to gain relief, trading partners would need to reduce their tariff and non-tariff barriers to make trade with the US more balanced.

China has retaliated, prompting Trump to escalate US tariffs to 104% on all Chinese goods since taking office.

Greer said it was “good news” that most trading partners had chosen not to retaliate.

“Other countries have signalled that they’d like to find a path towards reciprocity. China has not said that, and we will see where that goes,” Greer said.

He declined to provide a timeline for Trump’s trade talks, but said USTR and other countries were working quickly – including overnight and on weekends.

“The trade deficit has been decades in the making, and it’s not going to be solved overnight,” he said.

Tariff frustration

Greer is the first Trump trade official to face Congress since Trump launched the first salvos of his trade war against China in February. Since then, it has expanded to Canada, Mexico, steel, aluminium and cars. Last week, Trump announced sweeping global tariffs.

Democrats vented their frustration at Greer over the duties. Some Republicans from farming states also criticised the tariffs.

Democrat Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico pushed Greer to concede that the tariffs would harm families and businesses through price rises and stock market losses. Greer disagreed and said his concerns lay more with Main Street than Wall Street.

“We can’t keep doing the same thing we always did, and if companies are having trouble adjusting their supply chains – which I’m very sensitive to – we have to deal,” Greer said.

Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, said he was sceptical about the administration’s decision to impose tariffs on allies, noting that 4 million Americans each year turned 65 and were seeing their retirement savings dwindle daily.

“I’m just trying to figure out whose throat I get to choke if it’s wrong,” he said, questioning the blanket approach.

Senator Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, raised his voice when questioning Greer about why the US had hit top ally Australia with a 10% tariff. The US has a free trade agreement – and a rare trade surplus – with Australia.

“The idea that we are going to whack friend and foe alike… is both insulting the Australians, undermines our national security and frankly makes us not a good partner,” Warner said.

Greer criticised Australia for restrictions on American beef due to mad cow disease, and said that with fewer trade barriers, the US would be “running up the score” on Australia with an even bigger trade surplus.