President Trump has announced that he is “unlikely” to grant another 90-day pause on his global tariff war once the current one expires in July. He might not have to.
Ahead of the deadline, US officials are planning phased negotiations under a common framework developed by the US Trade Representative’s office, individuals familiar with the plans have told the Wall Street Journal.
The framework:
Divides negotiations into categories, including tariffs & quotas, non-tariff barriers (such as regulations), product origin criteria, digital trade issues, and economic security concerns.
Will allow US officials to outline custom-tailored demands for different nations.
Focuses on trade with about 18 major US partners, with talks broken down weekly, six at a time, and continued on a rolling basis until Trump’s July 8 deadline.
Doesn’t apply to Mexico, Canada or China, which may face a different negotiating track.
If no deal is reached, US tariffs go back on.
Tariff Wars, Take 2
“Current concessions are the result of internal and global backlash. The tariffs were not well conceptualized. Consumers and small businesses are rejecting them en masse. So this is an adjustment by Trump,” digital economy specialist Ashraf Patel, commenting on the framework outlined by WSJ.
“There is some scope for negotiating” under the new approach, Patel, a research associate at the Pretoria, South Africa-based Institute for Global Dialogue, said.
The question is whether the plan is well-developed this time.
“Geopolitics and multilateralism are fractured. The WTO is not functioning well. So there have to be bilateral deals,” the expert emphasized.
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