Investing.com - U.S. President Donald Trump weighed in on a variety of matters Thursday, including China, tariffs, Powell, and Russia, following his visit with Italy’s Prime Minister Meloni. Below are some highlights.
Trump on China
President Trump expressed confidence that the U.S. will come to a trade deal with China and said he wasn’t worried about recent visits between Chinese President Xi Jinping and three of U.S. allies.
"We’re going to make a deal... I think we’re going to make a very good deal with China," Trump said.
Related to the visits, he added, "No... nobody can compete with us—nobody."
Trump on Tariffs
Trump also said tariffs are going well and the country is taking in a lot of money.
“You have to understand we’re getting right now 25% on cars, 25% on steel, 25% on aluminum,” he commented. “We’re getting a 10% baseline. We took that down just because it was the appropriate thing to do until we decided what the number will be. And we’re taking in a lot of money, which we’ve never done before. Frankly, with Biden, we will lose a fortune on trade. But we’re moving along very nicely. We’re going to end up with a baseline of a substantial number, which we never got anything. You know, the United States never got anything until I came along. And then I put very substantial tariffs on China, if you remember. And we took in hundreds of billions of dollars.”
Trump later added that the U.S. is doing well with negotiations and a lot of countries want to make a deal more than he does.
He referred to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to provide specifics. “We’re working on the big 15 economies first,” Bessent said. “We had a fantastic meeting with Japan yesterday. I believe they’ve been called with the EU already. And then we have South Korea coming in next week, and I believe India is also talking – that’s moving very quickly.”
Trump on Powell
Trump also doubled down on his call from earlier Thursday to terminate Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, whom he claims is slow in lowering interest rates.
“Oh he’ll leave,” Trump said. “If I ask him to, he’ll be out of there. I don’t think he’s doing the job. He’s always too late, a little slow. I’m not happy with him. If I want him out, he’ll be out of there real fast.”
Despite the harsh comments from Trump, Politico reported this afternoon that Treasury Secretary Bessent has consistently warned White House officials that trying to remove Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell could unsettle financial markets.
Trump on Putin
Commenting on how much longer Russia’s Putin will have to respond to your ceasefire proposal, Trump said: "We’ll see... We’re going to be hearing from them this week... but we want it to stop. We want the death and the killing to stop."
Trump on Italy’s Prime Minister Meloni
Trump also discussed today’s meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
"I do like her very much, I think she’s a great Prime Minister. I think she’s doing a fantastic job in Italy. We’re very proud of her... She’s one of the real leaders of the world."