Asia

“That is a tremendous amount of money that would come in to our country. I have not made that decision yet.”

The fourth tranche will cover “essentially all remaining imports from China, which are valued at approximately $300 billion,” Lighthizer said.

China’s newly proposed draft text for World Trade Organization negotiations on electronic commerce includes privacy and transparency provisions, but what it lacks -- namely, provisions ensuring the free flow of data across borders and a ban on data localization -- runs counter to U.S. priorities in the fledgling negotiations.

Beijing pledges to “support the necessary reforms of the WTO [and] safeguard the authority and effectiveness of the multilateral trading system.”

China says it will not be intimidated by President Trump's plan to raise tariffs on $200 billion worth of goods and slap an additional $325 billion in imports with tariffs, but U.S. industry and agricultural groups are preparing for the economic effects of Trump's moves and China's retaliation.

“Guess what, that’s not going to happen! China has just informed us that they (Vice-Premier) are now coming to the U.S. to make a deal. We’ll see, but I am very happy with over $100 Billion a year in Tariffs filling U.S. coffers...great for U.S., not good for China!”

Vice President Mike Pence heard from Senate Republicans on Tuesday about their concerns with the Trump administration’s decision to hike tariff rates on Chinese goods if a satisfactory deal with Beijing is not reached this week.

The Trump administration must ensure that ongoing U.S.-China negotiations are “worthwhile” and “not repeat 2011,” when China reneged on specific reforms, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said on Tuesday.