USTR: Some Deals Ready, but Trump May Reject Them
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, in two television interviews Aug. 1, defended a surprise 39% rate for Swiss exports and said his focus isn't on reaching new settlements before reciprocal tariffs begin collection Aug. 7. Rather, he said, "We're really focused right now on implementing the deals that have been reached."
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A Bloomberg television host asked, wasn't it true that Switzerland had reached an agreement with the team and was just waiting for the president's sign-off?
Greer said, "I think that's an overstatement." He said that "during our discussions with them, we weren't able to reach agreement on the best way to reduce that [$40 billion] trade deficit at all."
He said that Switzerland exports "enormous amounts of pharmaceuticals to our country," and the U.S. wants to manufacture its own medicines. "So this is a challenging situation, and so we have a high tariff not just on Switzerland, but many countries where we weren't able to fully resolve the path forward on reducing the trade deficit and opening markets."
The host asked if India, Switzerland, or other countries that have been negotiating might get a lower tariff by Aug. 7, and Greer said that wasn't his focus, though he said, "Of course, any country wants to talk to us, they can always talk to us."
On Fox Business, Greer said that these tariffs "are the highest level of tariffs that we've seen, and this is a great deal for the country."
According to research from Yale Budget Lab, the weighted average, including most favored nation, Section 232, Section 301 and reciprocal tariffs, will be 18.3%, the highest since 1934, if the Aug. 7 tariffs go into effect and the current treatment for Mexico and China continues.
Host Maria Bartiromo asked him what Canada could do to stop fentanyl, and Greer said the low volume of fentanyl that is found crossing from Canada is not an argument that Canada is not a problem, but rather that Canadian enforcement is weak.
Greer said there are some completed deals that have not been announced, but could be signed "if the President wants them. You know, at some point, you know, his view is, maybe a tariff is better than a deal."
When asked again how many will come together by the end of the year, he said, "It could be a handful," but it depends on the president.
"Remember, the President's goal here is to reduce the trade deficit and to reshore manufacturing and to really use tariffs as a tool of trade policy and economic policy like it's meant to be used," he said.
Bartiromo asked Greer how the U.S. could negotiate with China, when it has been such a bad actor.
"We want to have a good, healthy trade relationship with China, but there's certainly problems we have to correct for in the future," he said, and said that a combined tariff of about 55% on Chinese products, "for us, is a good deal."
Greer said he's been dealing with the Chinese for many years, and represented "U.S. companies that have suffered from dumped imports from the Chinese," so he is clear-eyed about Chinese economic practices the U.S. says are harmful to its interests.
"At the same time, this is a major economy, this is a big country. We have to be able to get along with these folks," he said. "So you have to find a way to adapt to each other in a way where you can have trade. Maybe it's trade in non-sensitive goods," but certainly, there have to be more U.S. exports and fewer Chinese imports. Because if you don't, U.S. factories close and production moves to China, he said, adding, "and this can't happen anymore."
Bartiromo asked if the U.S. would consider using access to U.S. equity markets as leverage to get the Chinese to agree to better terms.
Greer suggested that talks are in a place where hardball isn't needed, but said, "If we ever feel we need to use leverage, we will." He said: "We have enormous leverage over the Chinese."