Commerce Sec’y Raimondo: Can’t Guarantee Biden Will Get Reciprocity if We Lift Tariffs on China, Main Reason Is ‘Fighting Inflation’

During an interview with Bloomberg on Monday, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo stated that there is no guarantee President Joe Biden will get something in return from China if the U.S. relaxes tariffs on China, and the main reason for him considering lifting tariffs is to combat inflation.

Co-host David Westin asked, “In terms of specific tariffs being taken off or not, is it possible it could be bilateral? Is it possible China could actually give something to the United States to try to reformulate our trade relations?”

Raimondo responded, “Certainly, that is possible and you raise an excellent point, which is part of the discussion, one of the things the president is thinking about, which is to say if we’re going to do this, what can they do on their side of the equation. So, while I can’t say for sure. Certainly, that is possible. And by the way, if it doesn’t happen immediately, it’s something that we will continue to pursue, just in the interest of…fairness. If we’re lifting tariffs, what are they going to do? Having said all of that, I think the president — the reason he’s looking at this is because fighting inflation is his number one priority. It’s the number one thing on the minds of Americans. American families are struggling in the grocery store, at the pump. And so, the president is saying to his team, I want to know everything possible that I could do to provide relief. And so, that’s why he’s considering this and that’s why he’s looking at it.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett