China Tariffs, El Salvador President In DC, Meta Antitrust Trial

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What are the latest developments in the US-China tariff exemptions?

Leila Fadel 0:03
There's now a carve-out for electronics on those steep tariffs the U.S. slapped on Chinese goods, but maybe not for long. Publicly, China showed defiance in the face of this trade war. Are the U.S. and China any closer to negotiations? I'm Leila Faldil with Michelle Martin, and this is Up First from NPR News. El Salvador's president is in D.C. for a meeting with President Trump. Nayib Bukele has taken hundreds of people deported from the U.S., alleging they're gang members. Bukele has called himself the world's coolest dictator, but has few fans among human rights advocates after locking up his own citizens without due process.
Michelle Martin 0:40
What comes out of this meeting? And the Federal Trade Commission is taking on social media giant Meta in court. The case centers on whether Meta broke competition laws when it acquired Instagram and WhatsApp. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.
NPR Politics Podcast 0:59
Does the idea of listening to political news freak you out? Well, don't sweat it. The NPR Politics Podcast makes politics a breeze. Every episode will break down the day's headlines into totally normal language and make sure that you walk away understanding what the day's news might mean for you. Take a deep breath and give politics another chance with the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts. Do you think you have ADHD? You're not alone. After the pandemic hit, there was a huge jump in ADHD diagnoses among adults. And at the same time, the internet is more and more obsessed with saying everything is a sign of it. To identify the red flags when a diagnosis goes viral, listen to the It's Been a Minute podcast today.
Michelle Martin 1:48
Over the weekend, there were no new tariffs on Chinese goods coming into the United States or on U.S. goods flowing into China.
Leila Fadel 1:55
In fact, late on Friday, the Trump administration outlined a substantial carve-out for mobile phones, computers, and other electronics. But that may not last very long, and neither side appears ready to back down.
Michelle Martin 2:08
NPR's John Ruitt has been following all these twists and turns from Beijing, and he's with us now to tell us more. Good morning, John.
John Ruich 2:15
Good morning.
Michelle Martin 2:16
So no new tariffs. And what about that carve out for electronics? Can you tell us more?

How is China responding to the new US tariff carve-outs?

John Ruich 2:21
Yeah, late on Friday, Customs and Border Protection posted a notice online. It was full of legalese and arcane tariff codes, and what it translated into was no tariffs on mobile phones, computers, memory chips, flat screens, LEDs, stuff like that. This is substantial because electronics account for roughly a quarter of Chinese exports to the U.S. China's Commerce Ministry responded fairly quickly over the weekend, calling it a small step toward correcting the error of imposing those so-called reciprocal tariffs on China and on other countries.
Michelle Martin 2:52
How is this being interpreted? Is it seen as a sign of goodwill or maybe a faith-saving way to de-escalate this trade war that Trump started?
John Ruich 3:01
It was initially, but it doesn't look like it is. You know, Trump's come out on social media to say that nobody's getting off the hook. These products are just moving to a different tariff bucket. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick explained it on Sunday on ABC's This Week.
Howard Lutnick 3:15
So all those products are going to come under semiconductors, and they're going to have a special focus type of tariff to make sure that those products get resured.
John Ruich 3:24
So he's saying they're exempted from the so-called reciprocal tariffs that Trump announced so that they're sort of off the menu for negotiation. Why? Because they're going to be lumped in with semiconductors under a separate tariff that he says will be announced in the next month or two. And not just on China. And the idea is to force supply chains of those products back to the U.S.
Michelle Martin 3:43
So where do things stand from China's perspective? Right.
John Ruich 3:46
Well, China's been pretty consistent. They've projected defiance throughout this. You know, Trump seems to be waiting for Chinese leader Xi Jinping to pick up the phone and call him. That's not how China operates. It doesn't mean that they're not open to discussion, though. I asked Andy Rothman about this last night here in Beijing.

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