Trump warns ‘nobody is off the hook’ for tariffs, with exemptions short-lived

Donald Trump says tech-related tariff exemptions are a temporary reprieve as China suspends exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets.

Donald Trump looks on during a cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House. Picture: AFP.

Donald Trump has sought to bring some clarity to the technology-related tariff exceptions for China that his administration rolled out over the weekend without much guidance.

“NOBODY is getting ‘off the hook’ for the unfair Trade Balances, and Non Monetary Tariff Barriers, that other Countries have used against us, especially not China which, by far, treats us the worst!” the President posted on his social-media platform.

“There was no Tariff ‘exception’ announced on Friday. These products are subject to the existing 20 per cent Fentanyl Tariffs, and they are just moving to a different Tariff ‘bucket.’”

After a brief blame-the-media claim, Mr Trump continued: “We are taking a look at Semiconductors and the WHOLE ELECTRONICS SUPPLY CHAIN in the upcoming National Security Tariff Investigations.” Trump said the products need to be made in the US and “we will not be held hostage by other Countries, especially hostile trading Nations like China, which will do everything within its power to disrespect the American People.”

The post came hours after US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick warned tariff exemptions on electronics such as smartphones and laptops were only a temporary reprieve and China reportedly suspended exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets, threatening to choke off supplies of components central to car makers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor companies and military contractors around the world.

Shipments of the magnets, essential for assembling everything from cars and drones to robots and missiles, have been halted at many Chinese ports while the Chinese government drafts a new regulatory system, The New York Times reports, as Beijing urges the Trump administration to abandon its aggressive trade tax policy altogether.

The world’s two largest economies have been locked in a fast-moving game of brinkmanship since Donald Trump launched a global tariff assault that particularly targeted Chinese imports.

Tit-for-tat exchanges have seen US levies imposed on China rise to 145 per cent, and Beijing setting a retaliatory 125 per cent band on American imports.

The US side appeared to dial down the pressure slightly on Saturday, listing tariff exemptions for smartphones, laptops, semiconductors and other electronic products for which China is a major source.

But Mr Lutnick said the exemptions would only last until the Trump administration develops a new tariff approach specific to the semiconductor industry.

“They’re exempt from the reciprocal tariffs but they’re included in the semiconductor tariffs, which are coming in probably a month or two,” Mr Lutnick the ABC on Sunday (local time).

Beijing’s Commerce Ministry said the electronics exemption only “represents a small step” and insisted that the Trump administration should “completely cancel” the whole tariff strategy.

The new exemptions will benefit US tech companies like Nvidia and Dell as well as Apple, which makes iPhones and other premium products in China.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick speaks to reporters outside the White House. Picture: AP.

The relief could, however, be short-lived with some of the exempted consumer electronics targeted for upcoming sector-specific tariffs on goods deemed key to US national defence networks.

Mr Trump has said he will give “very specific” details on Monday. On Air Force One on Saturday, he told reporters: “We’ve been making a lot of money. It’s been the other way around. Other countries, in particular China was making a lot of money.”

The US president sent financial markets into a tailspin earlier this month by announcing sweeping import taxes on dozens of trade partners, only to abruptly announce a 90-day pause for most of them.

The White House says Trump remains optimistic about securing a deal with China, although administration officials have made it clear they expect Beijing to reach out first.

Mr Trump’s trade representative Jamieson Greer told CBS that “we don’t have any plans” for a talk between the president and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

China has sought to present itself as a stable alternative to an erratic Washington, courting countries spooked by the global economic storm.

Mr Xi on Monday kicks off a five-day Southeast Asia tour for talks with the leaders of Vietnam, a manufacturing powerhouse, as well as Malaysia and Cambodia.

The fallout from Mr Trump’s tariffs – and subsequent whiplash policy reversals – has sent particular shockwaves through the US economy, with investors dumping government bonds, the dollar tumbling and consumer confidence plunging.

Adding to the pressure on Mr Trump, Wall Street billionaires – including a number of his own supporters – have openly criticised the whole tariff strategy as damaging and counter-productive.

The White House insists the aggressive policy is bearing fruit, saying dozens of countries have already opened trade negotiations to secure a deal before the 90-day pause ends.

“We’re working around the clock, day and night, sharing paper, receiving offers and giving feedback to these countries,” Mr Greer told CBS.

AFP/AP