FOREIGN POLICY/TAXES/TRADE DEALS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump said Monday [2-12-18] he planned to announce as soon as this week what he called a ‘reciprocal tax’ on trade, aimed at countries that he said are taking advantage of the U.S.
Mr. Trump’s blueprint for the tax surprised some of his top aides, who warned that no formal plans have been prepared. Mr. Trump’s comments came during a meeting in the White House with mayors and governors to discuss overhauling the nation’s roads and bridges… After the meeting, one senior administration official said Mr. Trump was considering responding in-kind to countries that put tariffs on American-made products… Mr. Trump has promised to rewrite the nation’s trade deals, which he views as outdated and detrimental to the U.S. economy. He promised new tariffs during the presidential campaign, and has talked before about a reciprocal tax, but without much detail.
Mr. Trump repeatedly mentioned the reciprocal tax during his infrastructure meeting, claiming that his predecessors were too ‘lazy’ to rework trade policies after World War II and the Korean War… The administration has since last April been studying the possibility of new tariffs on steel and aluminum imports in the name of national security. The White House faces an April deadline to make a decision, and Mr. Trump is scheduled to meet with lawmakers Tuesday to discuss the issue.
The administration is also reviewing Chinese trade practices—particularly allegations that Beijing forces U.S. companies to transfer proprietary intellectual property to Chinese competitors—with an eye to wide-ranging tariffs and other penalties. The deadline for that probe is August, but officials have said they would like to reach a conclusion much sooner.”
-Michael C. Bender, “Trump Says He Plans ‘Reciprocal Tax’ on Some U.S. Trading Partners,” The Wall Street Journal online, Feb. 12, 2018 03:40pm