US said to delay excess capacity tariffs until after Xi summit

According to an earlier Bloomberg report, the Trump administration intended to release a trade report on excess capacity before the summit, which would recommend a 7.5 per cent tariff on Chinese goods.

The US is expected to delay the announcement of new tariffs over allegations of trading partners’ excess manufacturing capacity at least until after next week’s planned summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.

Bloomberg earlier reported that the administration intended to release a trade report on excess capacity before the US-China leaders’ meeting, which would recommend a 7.5 per cent tariff on Chinese goods. The reason for the delay is unclear.

It is also uncertain whether the final tariff rate will change from the previously expected level, which would restore Trump’s second-term duties on China to around 20 per cent, a rate Beijing has previously said is consistent with its trade truce with Washington. 

In March, the Trump administration launched an investigation into more than a dozen major trading partners under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 over excess capacity concerns.

Those expected levies, along with already-implemented duties related to forced labour, are expected to eventually bring tariff rates closer to Trump’s country-specific duties that were overturned by the Supreme Court earlier in 2026.

The Office of the US Trade Representative and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.

Inside US Trade first reported the delay. 

US and Chinese officials are expected to discuss a number of issues during the summit, including the war in Iran, trade and artificial intelligence. BLOOMBERG