Trump Claims China ‘Calling a Lot’ After Tariff Hike, Predicts Deal Within a Month

President Donald Trump says the phones have been ringing off the hook from Beijing ever since his administration nearly tripled tariffs on Chinese imports, shooting them up from 54% to a jaw-dropping 145% just last week. Chatting with reporters after signing executive orders focused on the seafood industry, Trump hinted that a trade deal with China could be wrapped up in as little as three to four weeks.

Pressed about direct contact with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump played it cool, neither confirming nor denying any recent conversations. He did, however, stress that top Chinese officials have reached out "a lot" since the tariff spike, adding, "If you knew Xi, you’d know that if they reached out, he knew exactly – he knew everything about it. He runs it very tight, very strong, very smart. And, yeah, we're talking to China."

Media reports have swirled that Trump is waiting for Beijing to make the first official call for direct leader-to-leader talks, with sources saying U.S. officials are nudging the Chinese side to initiate. But Trump stuck to his script, emphasizing his "very good relationship" with Xi, while remaining coy about any specifics.

“I would think over the next three or four weeks, I think maybe the whole thing could be concluded,” Trump told reporters, sounding optimistic but also leaving plenty of wiggle room.

As for the possibility of talks breaking down, Trump shrugged it off: "At a certain point, if we don't make a deal, we'll just set a limit. We'll set a tariff. We'll set some parameters, and we'll say, 'Come in and shop.' They always have a right not to do it, so they can say, 'Well, we don't want it, so we're not going to shop there, we're not going to shop in the store of America.' We have something that nobody else has, and that's the American consumer."

Despite calls from advisers to speed things up, Trump insisted there’s “plenty” of time to make a deal, confident that the U.S. holds all the cards with its massive consumer market. Only time will tell if this high-stakes staring contest ends with a handshake—or just another round of tariffs.