ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States will cut its tariffs on Chinese goods related to fentanyl to 10% from 20%, after his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea.
Xi will work “very hard to stop the flow” of fentanyl, Trump said, and the tariff was reduced “because I believe they are really taking strong action.”
Trump said a great deal of decisions were made in his summit with Xi Jinping, describing it as “an amazing meeting.”
China will purchase “tremendous amounts” of U.S. soybeans and other farm products “starting immediately”, and a one-year agreement on rare earths has been reached which will be extended after a year, Trump said.
“They’re not going to impose the rare earth controls,” he said.
Trump had said earlier he expects to reduce U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for Beijing’s commitment to curb the flow of precursor chemicals to make fentanyl, a deadly synthetic opioid that is the leading cause of American overdose deaths.
Beijing has sought the lifting of 20% tariffs over fentanyl among other matters.
Trump was speaking to reporters on board Air Force One departing South Korea on the last leg of his Asia trip.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and Jack Kim; Writing by Joyce Lee in Seoul; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Ed Davies)
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