On Feb. 24 President Trump tweeted that he would delay the tariff increase scheduled for March 1. So far, there has been no official communication besides the two tweets, copied here:
“I am pleased to report that the U.S. has made substantial progress in our trade talks with China on important structural issues including intellectual property protection, technology transfer, agriculture, services, currency, and many other issues. As a result of these very…
….productive talks, I will be delaying the U.S. increase in tariffs now scheduled for March 1. Assuming both sides make additional progress, we will be planning a Summit for President Xi and myself, at Mar-a-Lago, to conclude an agreement. A very good weekend for U.S. & China!”
The tweets didn’t specify how long the extension of a trade truce would last or any date for a potential summit.
According to an alert from the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), “This tweet does not mention the corresponding tariff increases from the Chinese side, but our understanding is the Chinese will apply tariffs at equal levels to the U.S. tariffs on the Chinese woodworking and furniture industry. For now tariffs will remain in place for U.S. hardwood products (10% or 5% depending on the species), but the scheduled increase from 10% to 20% and 25% has been delayed indefinitely – most likely at least until the meeting between Trump and Xi.”