‘So Much For Being Mr Nice Guy': Trump Signals Fresh Trade Tensions, Warns China

Last Updated:May 30, 2025, 20:07 IST

Amid soaring tensions, Trump accused China of violating its tariff deal adding that he is no longer going to be "Mr Nice Guy".

The world's two biggest economies had agreed this month to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs they had imposed on each other (File)

US President Donald Trump on Friday signaled renewed trade tensions with China saying that Beijing had “violated" a trade deal to de-escalate tariffs, at a time when both sides appeared deadlocked in negotiations.

Amid soaring tensions, Trump accused China of violating its tariff deal adding that he is no longer going to be “Mr Nice Guy".

In a post on TruthSocial, Trump said, “Two weeks ago China was in grave economic danger! The very high Tariffs I set made it virtually impossible for China to TRADE into the United States marketplace which is, by far, number one in the World. We went, in effect, COLD TURKEY with China, and it was devastating for them. Many factories closed and there was, to put it mildly, “civil unrest." I saw what was happening and didn’t like it, for them, not for us."

“I made a FAST DEAL with China in order to save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation, and I didn’t want to see that happen. Because of this deal, everything quickly stabilized and China got back to business as usual. Everybody was happy! That is the good news!!! The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US. So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!" Trump added.

Trump’s remarks came hours after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that trade talks with China were “a bit stalled," in an interview with broadcaster Fox News.

The world’s two biggest economies had agreed this month to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs they had imposed on each other, in a pause to last 90 days, after talks between top officials in Geneva.

US trade representative Jamieson Greer, in a CNBC interview, echoed Trump’s allegation, saying that America was concerned with China’s purported non-compliance with the tariff deal.

The “United States did exactly what it was supposed to do, and the Chinese are slow rolling their compliance,"said Greer.He called that “completely unacceptable and has to be addressed."

US-China Trade War

On April 2, the US had imposed a “reciprocal tariff" of 34% on Chinese goods, on top of 20% tariffs that Trump had previously imposed on Chinese products since starting his current term. Those tariffs were driven by Trump blaming China for the fentanyl crisis that has ravaged thousands of American lives and led to several deaths in the US.

So, in effect tariffs on Chinese goods was 54%.

In retaliation, China hit back US with a 34% tariff on imports from the US. Following this, both countries kept on increasing tariffs against each in a tit-for-tat escalation. Finally, the US imposed a 145% tariff on China while China slapped 125% taxes on the US.

What’s The Current Tariff Deal?

In a joint statement, the US and China said they would suspend their respective tariffs for 90 days and continue negotiations they started this weekend. Under the agreement, the US would reduce the tariff on Chinese imports to 30% from its current 145%, while China would lower its import duty on American goods to 10% from 125%.

(With inputs from agencies)

Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)

News world ‘So Much For Being Mr Nice Guy': Trump Signals Fresh Trade Tensions, Warns China