WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump predicted he would reach a "fantastic" trade deal with China at the end of the month, despite the ongoing trade war over tariffs and rare-earth minerals.
"I think we’re going to end up having a fantastic trade deal with China," Trump told reporters at the White House.
His optimism contrasted with a trade war of dueling tariffs and a Chinese threat to withhold rare earths from the rest of the world. Trump was meeting Oct. 20 with Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to announce a deal for processing rare-earth minerals that are crucial for electronics and military equipment, and investing $1 billion in joint projects.
Their announcement came after China announced restrictions Oct. 9 on rare-earth exports. In response, Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Chinese imports to 157% if no trade deal is reached by Nov. 1.
Besides the rare-earth restrictions, Chinese retaliatory tariffs have nearly eliminated that country importing U.S. agricultural products. China is the top importer of U.S. soybeans and farmers are concerned about selling this year’s crop.
