Washington, Jakarta finalizing trade deal
The United States expects to finalize a trade deal with Indonesia in the next couple weeks, a top negotiator said Tuesday.
US Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer also said in a Fox Business interview that Washington’s trade relationship with Beijing is currently “stable” ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned trip to China in April.
Asked about any upcoming trade deals, Greer said, “I would point to Indonesia as the next big one,” and expressed his expectation that the Southeast Asian country with a population of more than 250 million will become a larger market for American products.
“We’re having almost daily conversations with the Indonesians, and this is something that we’re all excited about,” he said, as the Trump administration has been announcing a series of bilateral trade deals, including with India and Bangladesh, in recent days.
The spate of announcements comes as the Supreme Court could issue a ruling as early as Feb. 20 on the legality of Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, which target imports from nearly all US trading partners based on a 1970s-era emergency law.
High tariffs
Greer said the Trump administration is “confident” with regard to the case. But even if the top court rules the levies unconstitutional, he said the administration will use “other tools” to impose high tariffs.
“It might take a little more time, but we’re… focused on having continuity in the type and level of tariffs that would need to be imposed,” he said.
On Trump’s possible trip to Beijing in April for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, he said, “It’s scheduled.”
Greer added that while the United States needs to continue trading with China, it has to be “managed in a way that’s good for our economy and for our national security.”
He said US and Chinese officials have been in touch regularly and will have further discussions before Trump’s meeting with Xi.
“We’re trying to make sure that trade is flowing in areas that are quite important to both of us,” he said.
