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Trump tariffs live updates: Trump says US and China are discussing a deal

Trump wouldn't say if he's talked to Chinese President Xi Jinping directly.

ByDavid Brennan, Kevin Shalvey, Alexandra Hutzler, Ivan Pereira, and Brittany Gaddy
Last Updated: April 18, 2025, 5:31 PM EDT

President Donald Trump revealed for the first time on Thursday that the United States is in talks with China on a tariff deal. Trump said a deal could be reached in the next three to four weeks.

Earlier Thursday, Trump met with Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni at the White House amid a tariff standoff with the European Union. The talks came a day after Trump met with Japanese officials and spoke with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.

Meanwhile, Trump is criticizing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, saying his "termination cannot come fast enough" after Powell said he expects Trump's tariff policy to cause higher inflation and slower economic growth.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing.
Apr 12, 2025, 1:37 PM EDT

White House responds to tech tariff exemptions

After the Trump administration announced tariff exemptions on key technology products, the White House is touting the investments that global tech companies have committed to making in the United States.

"President Trump has made it clear America cannot rely on China to manufacture critical technologies such as semiconductors, chips, smartphones, and laptops," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to ABC News.

Leavitt claimed tech companies like Apple and Nvidia are making more investments in the U.S.

"At the direction of the President, these companies are hustling to onshore their manufacturing in the United States as soon as possible," she claimed, without providing more details.

A White House official told ABC News that the president has said autos, steel, pharmaceuticals, chips and other specific materials will be included in specific tariffs.

This means the relief for certain technology sectors could be short-lived.

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One before departing from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, on April 11, 2025.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Other tariffs also still apply to smartphones, laptops and other electronics announced in the exemption, as they only exempt those products from Trump's most recent tariffs. The administration had earlier imposed 20% fentanyl-related tariffs in February.

-ABC News' Selina Wang

Apr 12, 2025, 10:40 AM EDT

Trump exempts phones, computers, chips from new tariffs

The Trump administration is exempting smartphones, computers, and other electronics from his reciprocal tariffs, according to a bulletin posted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection late Friday night.

The exemptions also include solar cells, flat panel TV displays, flash drives, computer processors, memory chips, semiconductor-based storage devices, and machines that are primarily used to make semiconductors.

New iPhones are seen on display at the The Fifth Avenue Apple Store in New York, April 4, 2025.
Sarah Yenesel/EPA via Shutterstock

Trump's total 145% tariffs on all goods from China was expected to hit tech companies like Apple, which relies on China to assemble the iPhone. UBS had estimated that the cost of the new iPhone16 Pro Max could jump by $950.

But the reprieve could be temporary. Trump has said he would impose tariffs on specific sectors, like semiconductor chips.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

-ABC News’ Selina Wang and Fritz Farrow

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