In an unexpected, but notable, victory for President Trump's aggressive trade agenda and exporters of cars around the globe, China's Ministry of Finance announced Tuesday morning that it would slash passenger car duties to 15%, further opening up the market that’s been a key target of the U.S. in its trade fight with Beijing. This comes less than a month after China decided to ease restrictions on foreign competition in its auto sector and also address some of the US's concerns about intellectual property theft.
The reduction follows a truce that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced during a Sunday appearance on "Fox News Sunday". In response, the US has continued to reverse its policy of pressuring telecom giant ZTE, with Trump taking steps to rescue it.
“This is, without a doubt, positive news,” said Juergen Pieper, Frankfurt-based head of automobiles research at Bankhaus Metzler who spoke with Bloomberg.
Investors would agree, with European auto stocks gapping higher on the news.
But while the administration will no doubt rush to claim this as a victory, nobody expects the tariff cuts to be a gesture of good faith on China's part: The US is now also expected to make a concession, perhaps in addition to reducing pressure on ZTE. Though for Trump, caving on ZTE is still a pretty big deal, even as the administration has been adamant about framing it as a national security issue and not a trade issue.
"You can’t completely disregard the fact that there are certain imbalances in China’s favor. This could be a signal that if one side is making concessions, it could lead to the Americans easing some of their pressure as well.”
Meanwhile, according to Bloomberg, the import duty on car parts will fall to 6%, from 25%. But Bloomberg warns that the cuts are largely symbolic, since they will only impact about 4.2% of car sales - at least for now (about 29 million cars were sold in China last year, and as tariffs fall, foreign car buying could become more commonplace).
China's President Xi Jinping and his Vice Premier Liu He both advised that China would start implementing market liberalizations particularly in its automobile market in the coming months. The decision also comes after China announced over the weekend that China would end its anti-dumping investigation into sorghum. It has also signaled that there might be a review of Qualcomm's bid to acquire NXP Semiconductors, which would be tantamount to another olive branch.
US and European carmakers were, understandably, delighted about China's decision.
Ford and Porsche, maker of the Cayenne and Panamera car models, welcomed the announcement.
"Chinese customers will have a chance to enjoy an even optimized price and pursue more personalized options when buying a car," Porsche said in a statement in China.
As Reuters reminds us, Trump has said that China's 25% auto import rate was "stupid trade", while Tesla's Elon Musk has seemingly never stopped cheering about China's move toward auto-market liberalization, something that would greatly benefit Tesla, which may be reaching saturation in the US.
In a foreshadowing of this morning's trade news, President Trump tweeted late last night that "under our potential deal with China, they will purchase from our Great American Farmers practically as much as our Farmers can produce."
Under our potential deal with China, they will purchase from our Great American Farmers practically as much as our Farmers can produce.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 21, 2018
The Trump administration isn't always reliable - particularly when it comes to their comments about Chinese trade relations (recall when Larry Kudlow said talks were making progress, only for the Chinese to publicly embarrass him by declaring that there hadn't been any talks). But by scaling back the import duty, China has given the Trump administration a boost of confidence, and a badly needed foreign policy win that appears destined to calm choppy markets. That is, unless China - or the US - abruptly decide to break off the talks. Or something else happens - tensions in the Pacific, perhaps, or maybe North Korea - that sets the budding detente back.
Comments
On a good note, their air quality will improve.
Cruze Missiles, Set sedan / hatchback for maximum effect. Target Beijing. GM to arms.
In reply to On a good note, their air… by NidStyles
Well.... despite the yarmulke war mongering, still the best President I can personally remember.
In reply to Cruze Missiles,Target… by Arnold
Thats truly sad....
Obama care in place and expanded - Yep
Welfare Reform - Nope
Hillary Free - Check
Moar War - Check
Secured Border - Nope
H1B reform - Nope
Caved on Trade - Yep (this token is a joke, no way China is buying a crappy Chevy Cruze)
Liberal Scotus - Check
Maximum Goldman Suchs - You Bet Ya
Maximum Neocon - Yep
Education Reform - Nope
Smaller Giverment - Nope
Stronger 2A - Nope eroding it as fast as he can
Owned by Israhell - Absolutely
2nd worse president America has ever had, and is making a strong case to become the worst.
In reply to Well.... despite the… by Zero Point
Worse than BIll Clinton and George "Patriot Act" Bush? Nope.
In reply to Thats truly sad.... Obama… by gatorengineer
All the right people still hate him, check
More money in my pocket, tax cuts. Check
Military helping with stopping illegal immigration, check
Exposing the deep State so it's common knowledge to the masses, check
Clapper losing his mind on national television, "we spied on a campaign and it's a good thing" check.
Survived endless attacks from MSM and Obama traitors, check.
Still moving forward with zero help from the Senate getting his appointments done, check
EPA, cleaning house while under non-stop MSM and Democrat and RINO attack, check
In reply to Worse than BIll Clinton and… by Zero Point
$2000 bet Trump will win 2020 - pretty much guaranteed. Place your bets, place your bets.
Watch the media turn 2020, watch the female vote follow media blitz, and don’t forget the BTFD before his re election.
In reply to All the right people still… by JimmyJones
Trump would beat Fauxcahontas or Booker, or Harris in a two candidate race. In a race with a third party like Bloomber, or Kasich, he would loose to any of the Dums. There will be a third party in 2020 count on it, the faction of the deepstate that opposes the factions whose face is Trump will see to it.
In reply to $2000 bet Trump will win… by Lizardking
Delusional.
In reply to Trump would beat… by gatorengineer
No, delusional is waking up every morning before the sun rises to work until after it sets and calling everyone that doesn’t do the same a child. Just so some frigging Jew can collect on your stupid ass because you don’t value education.
That my friend is delusional, everything else is merely a justification of poorly thought out time management.
In reply to Delusional. by tmosley
???
In reply to No, delusional is waking up… by NidStyles
I don't believe it to be that outlandish. For a lot of us, 2016 was no surprise at all.
Don't forget, people didn't really vote for Trump. For starters, he got fewer votes than Hillary, and how many of Trumps votes were people voting against her specifically. Can the same situation occur in 2020 where Democrats put up a candidate that people turn their nose in disgust and vote for Trump again? If you look at people like Tom Perez and Howard Dean, I think it's already baked into the 2020 cake.
The loss in 2018 is just going to further cause the Democrats to lurch even further into the corporate-obsessed groupthink that they share with Republicans and call it "centrism". Especially if this latest spying scandal is even half as bad as it seems.
The Democrats still haven't learned from losing 1000 seats nationwide and then lost to second worst Presidential candidate in the nation's history. George W. Bush, probably a much bigger idiot than Trump, also won because of the Electoral College (he got fewer votes than Gore too), but he was re-elected in 2004 in spite of Iraq and other boondoggles.
In reply to Delusional. by tmosley
You smokin da kind...whatever it is I want some!
In reply to Trump would beat… by gatorengineer
More money in my pocket, tax cuts. Check
-- you dont own a home in a northern state
Military helping with stopping illegal immigration, check
-- Fact Check Tweeted but not happening....
Exposing the deep State so it's common knowledge to the masses, check
-- So F'ing what nothing came of it, all it did is raise the temperature in the Frog pot.
Clapper losing his mind on national television, "we spied on a campaign and it's a good thing" check.
-- See above
Survived endless attacks from MSM and Obama traitors, check.
--And this did what exactly?
Still moving forward with zero help from the Senate getting his appointments done, check
--Fact Check, he is NOT filling dozens of Lower Court Open slots, that could have been huge
EPA, cleaning house while under non-stop MSM and Democrat and RINO attack, check
--Fact Check Tweeted but Absolutely NOTHING done
In reply to All the right people still… by JimmyJones
>you dont own a home in a northern state
It isn't Trump's fault that you have chosen to live in a state run by spendthrifts. We aren't going to subsidize your state budgets any more.
>Fact Check Tweeted but not happening....
Wrong: https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/04/10/national-guard-members-s…
>So F'ing what nothing came of it, all it did is raise the temperature in the Frog pot.
Is today the end of history? FFS.
>And this did what exactly?
https://www.conservapedia.com/Donald_Trump_achievements
>Fact Check, he is NOT filling dozens of Lower Court Open slots, that could have been huge
https://www.conservapedia.com/Donald_Trump_achievements:_The_courts
>Fact Check Tweeted but Absolutely NOTHING done
Basically, you're either fucking retarded or a traitor to our country spreading lies and misinformation. If you really are an engineer, then it must be the latter.
In reply to More money in my pocket, tax… by gatorengineer
">you dont own a home in a northern state
It isn't Trump's fault that you have chosen to live in a state run by spendthrifts. We aren't going to subsidize your state budgets any more."
I will be happy to give up the SALT deduction as long as 95% of the Fed Tax dollar go back to the originating state. Tired of those "low tax red states" pigs feeding off of my federal tax dollars then complaining the blue state taxes are too high.
Fucking ignorants.
In reply to >you dont own a home in a… by tmosley
Worse than Clinton and Bush....
Absolutetly, because of the desperation of the world for leadership and change. We have never needed as much as we do now and Trump is failing on all counts. If Trump were in at the time of Clinton and Baby Bush, he absolutely would have been better than either, in that time. However, in Americas time of Crisis Trump is a disaster.
In reply to Worse than BIll Clinton and… by Zero Point
If your grandma had ....
In reply to Worse than Clinton and Bush… by gatorengineer
Just hand wave it all away, clown.
In reply to Thats truly sad.... Obama… by gatorengineer
Whose the worst? Obama was less of a Jew ass sucker than Trump is.
In reply to Thats truly sad.... Obama… by gatorengineer
I give it to Obowel as the worst, although he pretty much did exactly what he said he would..... Best to Worst in my life time and its not a pretty list
Reagan
Clinton
Pappy Bush
W
Carter
Trump
Obowel
In reply to Whose the worst? Obama was… by messystateofaffairs
Jesus fucking Christ. You're a fuckin retard. Can't fix stupid, sorry buddy.
In reply to I give it to Obowel as the… by gatorengineer
What's sad is your understanding of what a POTUS can legally do.
Obama care mandate killed. It will collapse
Welfare - Congress job
Hillary - protected by the swamp
War is inevitable, has been throughout history
Secured border - no funding by Congress
H1B reform in the works
China came to the table on trade as this article points out.
Liberal Soctus...whatever
Education you can bring a horse to water but can't make it drink. And its not the federal gov job to educate, far from it.
Smaller gov again, congress
In reply to Thats truly sad.... Obama… by gatorengineer
BS. LBJ by far the worst followed by the Marxist Muslim Obama and Carter. Worst first lady Hillary.
In reply to Thats truly sad.... Obama… by gatorengineer
If we could get just ONE Dollar from each person in China, we would receive over a BILLION DOLLARS!
and what is a Billion dollars today, its 1/4 the price of a football stadium for the LA rams......
$100 today is the $10 bill of 1980, if you are old enough to remember.
In reply to If we could get just ONE… by Jackprong
We lose about 25% every ten years, conservatively and it sucks. Wage inflation doesn't nearly keep up with that. On this I agree with you.
In reply to and what is a Billion… by gatorengineer
Smaller Giverment - Nope
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/hundreds-of-top-government-jobs-under…
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/01/…
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2017/05/19/nearly…
https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060057274
In reply to We lose about 25% every ten… by JimmyJones
A few hundred top slots dont matter... .Look at the number of parasites
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2018/jan/22/taking-meas…
Again, not what he tweets but what is actually happening.
In reply to Smaller Giverment - Nope… by Arnold
Stop looking at liberal propaganda outlets, dumbass.
In reply to A few hundred top slots dont… by gatorengineer
fuck them.
@buzzsaw99 - I still see it as Trump has dragged them kicking and screaming to the negotiations.
Not a chance for them, Iran, NK and EU all the same in a way.
The democrats portray him as the "orange monster", irrelevant you will play or you will be sidelined.
I think it is excellent, betting odds and we are in May the free trade bullshit will be odds on dead by Xmas :-).
That's a serious win for all trade deficit countries globally.
In reply to fuck them. by buzzsaw99
yen left me this link yesterday:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_largest_trading_partners_of_t…
the eu is definitely high on the trump shit list along with china but the number for ye good olde uk was actually positive. added to that is the fact that BritBob left an on topic comment on this thread.
your stock is rising number two. [/dr. evil]
In reply to @buzzsaw99 - I still see it… by GreatUncle
Be careful what you ask for, what happened, is called "body language" geostrategy - I give you something publicly, you give something too - publicly, or otherwise. China can afford to be magnanimous, the US negotiations team, should also extend some restraint, and not crow unnecessarily. This is what you call maturity, and the US team, need to demonstrate that.
A big win for Trump for sure. If he can break free of the need to bombast, he can achieve a lot geopolitically. Not every problem is a nail, requiring hammering. Kudos to the Chinese for this magnanimous gesture.
Team USA! Over to you...
In reply to @buzzsaw99 - I still see it… by GreatUncle
See I disagree, we have had the non bombastic presidents and look where it got us. I like the change. He calls them out publicly and forces a response.
In reply to Be careful what you ask for,… by Scipio Africanuz
rattling their cage will acomplish nothing. what he does is constantly remind the american public, and the eu for that matter, how far we've fallen.
In reply to See I disagree, we have had… by JimmyJones
I think so. They know they've got a monkey with a grenade to deal with and need to keep it calm while they quietly insert their long term plans.
In reply to rattling their cage will… by buzzsaw99
The game is still young, and its a long game, longer than Trump will last, Xi will be there for life. Trump is feeding the Corporations at the expense of middle class and SME's. Anything can happen but whoever frees the SME's inside their borders will win the long game of sustainable economic well being.
In reply to See I disagree, we have had… by JimmyJones
"Local production for local consumption" terrifies Wall Street.
In reply to The game is still young, and… by messystateofaffairs
Do you honestly think that GM is going to be exporting American cars to China now because they lowered tariffs?
China is doing this because they know they can get away with lowering them. This tariff reduction was simply a tiny little bone they threw at Trump so his American base can ejaculate over that piece of irrelevant news. Twitter Trump is making himself so predictable that even the Chinese can manipulate the crap out of him and yet makes Trump think he's still in charge...
This reduction was only made possible after the Chinese central committee realized that the tariff outlived its usefulness. Whatever "American" cars will be sold in China, will be made in China, by "American" firms. End of story. And the other cars that the Chinese may want, aren't made by Americans.
If people think that this lowered tariff is actually going to permanently (or even temporarily) open up another line somewhere in the USA...
Nothing is truly going to change for the average man on the street, either here or over there in China.
In reply to See I disagree, we have had… by JimmyJones
US - China trade The U.S. trade deficit with China was $347 billion in 2016. The trade deficit exists because U.S. exports to China were only $116 billion while imports from China were $463 billion. I guess that China has more to lose.
Bob, it's tough to sell to China, when the first clause of the contract requires all propitiatory information concerning the product.
Yet Monsanto Beans don't seem to have that restriction.
In reply to US - China trade The U.S… by BritBob
All US Tech companies sold Qty 1 to china after that it was copied as naseum at 25 percent the price and 50 percent the capacity, but the chinese didnt care because it was cheap.
In reply to Bob, it's tough to sell to… by Arnold
yep - i just sold 3000 usd of hydraulic seal kits to a mfg in china of big cylinders - was 30% import duty to china AND the bastards wanted to know the brand name of each part - which we didn't give them in the end - they said chinese customs dept wanted the brand names - anyway - was my first export to a company in china - what a bunch of crooks over there is all I have to say about chinese customs dept and import duties - only 0-10% max here in thailand for all types of hydraulic seals and seals of any sort
In reply to Bob, it's tough to sell to… by Arnold
My experience was with the South Koreans, now a quarter lifetime ago..
We had developed yet another process for separating contaminants from soils, and replacing clean dirt, with the majority of the chemical contamination destroyed on site.
We received the notice to proceed, and of course turned over our process for permitting.
Oh, we can do this, here is adequate compensation, goodby, was the result.
In reply to yep - i just sold 3000 usd… by shrimpythai
Shitlibs will call this characterization 'racist.' It's not. It's literally how the Orient regards the Occident.
I watched a friend attempt to do honorable, 'win-win' business with an Oriental company. Two years later, he was filing for bankruptcy.
In reply to yep - i just sold 3000 usd… by shrimpythai
they will un-announce it next Tuesday.
Exactly.
In reply to they will un-announce it… by DingleBarryObummer
they will put up other defacto barriers. there was a story about what happened when the china ptb was riling up the populace against japan. people started vandalizing every japanese made car they saw. the official line is just part of the story. they have spent decades maximizing the trade deficit with the usa. they will never cut it voluntarily.
In reply to they will un-announce it… by DingleBarryObummer
So basically you are saying they will just play the "shell game"?
In reply to they will put up other… by buzzsaw99
Pagination