The Trump administration may extend the deadline for finalizing a one-on-one trade agreement next month.
As the July 8 deadline nears, Representative Don Beyel (D-Va.) questioned Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent about the possibility of granting more time, particularly as numerous nations rush to reach agreements with the White House.
“As I’ve said before, we have 18 key trading partners,” Bescent informed the House Ways and Means Committee.
“It’s likely that we will push the deadline forward to facilitate ongoing negotiations with these countries. If someone isn’t negotiating, then we won’t proceed.”
On April 2, which Trump dubbed “liberation day,” he introduced a 10% baseline tariff on nearly all imported goods, alongside various fees affecting U.S. imports.
Trump recently announced a 90-day pause on these fees to allow more time for negotiations.
The White House indicated last week was the final opportunity for countries to present their best trade offers.
Furthermore, Trump has established several trade deadlines and postponed a planned 50% tariff on the European Union, which was set to begin on June 1, now extended to July 9.
The administration has also reached a preliminary trade agreement with the UK, and earlier this week, Trump mentioned progress in negotiations with China.
If Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping endorse the deal, it could reinstate vital elements of a trade truce with Beijing that was negotiated last month in Geneva.
This framework is intended to give the two major economies until August 10 to finalize more detailed trade arrangements.
The Geneva agreement saw U.S. tariffs reduce from 125% to 10%, while the U.S. cut its own tariffs from 145% after both nations had imposed penalties on each other following “liberation day.”
According to Trump, under this new arrangement, China could face tariffs as high as 55% on many exports.
In addition to the 10% baseline tariff and the tariffs on China, a 25% tariff has been levied on imports from Canada and Mexico, separate from the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
