US President Donald Trump threatened China with a 200% tariff increase if it refuses to export magnets to the United States. Speaking to reporters at the White House in Washington on Monday during a meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, Trump noted that the US has much better economic relations with China than before and that China is acting wisely, having effectively monopolized the global magnet market. “They have to supply us with magnets, and if they don’t, we have to impose a 200% tariff or something like that,” he said. On April 2, Trump announced additional tariffs on several US trade partners including China. In response, China took similar measures, escalating the trade conflict, with the US raising tariffs on Chinese goods to 145%, while China imposed 125% tariffs on US imports.

Following rising trade tensions, US and Chinese officials met in Geneva on May 10-11 to negotiate tariffs and agreed to reduce them for 90 days. The US agreed to lower tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%, effective May 14 for 90 days, while China reduced tariffs on US goods from 125% to 10%. Officials met again in June in London and announced an agreement on a “framework” to implement the previous Geneva trade deal. The third round of US-China trade negotiations took place in July in Stockholm.