China Will Continue to Suspend Extra Tariffs on US Vehicles, Auto Parts

A man drives a red car past a parking lot where large numbers of newly manufactured cars are parked at Dayaowan port of Dalian, Liaoning Province on June 10, 2012. Reuters

BEIJING—China’s State Council said on March 31 that the country would continue to suspend additional tariffs on U.S. vehicles and auto parts after April 1, in a goodwill gesture following a U.S. decision to delay tariff hikes on Chinese imports.

In December, China said it would suspend additional 25 percent tariffs on U.S.-made vehicles and auto parts for three months, following a truce in a trade war between the world’s two largest economies.

The State Council, or cabinet, said Sunday’s move was aimed at “continuing to create a good atmosphere for the ongoing trade negotiations between both sides.”

“It is a positive reaction to the U.S. decision to delay tariff hikes and a concrete action adopted (by the Chinese side) to promote bilateral trade negotiations,” the State Council said.

The Chinese regime also said it would announce separately when the suspension would end.

President Donald Trump said on Friday that trade talks with China were going very well, but cautioned that he would not accept anything less than a “great deal” after top U.S. and Chinese trade officials wrapped up two days of negotiations in Beijing.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer were in the Chinese capital for the first face-to-face meetings between the two sides since Trump delayed a scheduled March 2 increase in tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods.

The talks are set to resume next week in Washington with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier Liu He.

By Stella Qiu