US Treasury Secretary: 'No Unilateral Tariff Reduction on China... Negotiations May Take Up to 3 Years'

Scott Besant, the US Treasury Secretary, drew a line by stating that President Donald Trump is unlikely to unilaterally reduce tariffs on China.

According to Walter Bloomberg on the 23rd (local time), Secretary Besant said, "President Trump has not proposed a unilateral tariff reduction on China," and "the starting point for talks with China has not yet been determined." He added, "Negotiations will begin at a lower level rather than at the level of direct involvement by the heads of state."

In particular, he suggested that "it may take 2-3 years to reach a full agreement with China," indicating that the negotiation period could be prolonged. As a result, there is an analysis that it will be difficult to achieve visible results in trade relations between the two countries in the short term.

Previously, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the US is considering reducing tariffs on China. In response to this question, Secretary Besant avoided a clear answer but mentioned, "It would not be surprising if a situation arises where both sides reduce tariffs in a reciprocal manner."

Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) was also affected by the related remarks. Bitcoin, which had surpassed the $94,000 level due to expectations of easing the tariff war between the US and China, fell to the $91,000 level during the day following Besant's remarks. After partially recovering the decline, Bitcoin is trading at the $93,000 level in the Binance Tether (USDT) market today.