[CTC] Trump Administration Lays Out Roadmap to Streamline Tariff Talks

[Arthur Stamoulis]

https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-tariff-trade-negotiations-phased-approach-7b8380a1


*Trump Administration Lays Out Roadmap to Streamline Tariff Talks*

By Gavin Bade

4/25/25



U.S. officials plan to conduct staggered trade negotiations using a new
template that sets common terms for many of the talks, according to people
familiar with the plans.



In an attempt to streamline talks over President Trump’s so-called
reciprocal tariffs, *officials plan to use a framework prepared by the U.S.
Trade Representative’s office that lays out broad categories for
negotiation: tariffs and quotas; non-tariff barriers to trade, such as
regulations on U.S. goods; digital trade; rules of origin for products; and
economic security and other commercial issues, according to people familiar
with a draft document outlining the negotiating terms.*



Within those categories, U.S. officials would spell out demands for
individual nations, people familiar with the matter said, emphasizing that
the document could change as the administration gets more input.



“USTR is working under an organized and rigorous framework and moving ahead
quickly with willing trading partners,” said a USTR spokeswoman. “President
Trump and USTR have made U.S. objectives clear and our trading partners
have a very good sense of what they can each individually offer.”



*The U.S. is looking to negotiate within the new framework with about 18
major U.S. trading partners on a rolling basis over the next two months*,
the people familiar with the matter said. The initial plan is for six
nations to come in for talks in one week, six nations in a second week, and
six nations for a third week of talks—an 18-nation cycle that would then
repeat until the administration’s self-imposed July 8 deadline. At that
point, reciprocal tariffs would hit nations that can’t reach a deal, unless
Trump further extends his 90 day pause.



The planned negotiating timeline could slip if talks hit a snag, one of the
people said. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt this week said
that the administration has received 18 trade proposals
<https://archive.ph/o/8DEMG/https:/www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-trump-tariffs-trade-war-04-22-25/card/white-house-18-trade-proposals-under-review-Lm2VvwY8sfMrwLyTIT9A>
on
paper from trading partners that it is currently reviewing.



It wasn’t clear which nations will be entering the planned negotiations
under USTR’s template, and which will have a different path for talks. Some
nations, such as India, appeared further along in trade talks than most
nations, with that government having agreed to broad terms of negotiation
when Vice President JD Vance was in New Delhi this week.



Mexico and Canada—the U.S.’s two largest trading partners—aren’t likely to
be involved in talks using the new trade template since Trump’s reciprocal
tariff order didn’t apply to them
<https://archive.ph/o/8DEMG/https:/www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-trump-tariffs-trade-war-04-09-25/card/canada-and-mexico-spared-10-reciprocal-tariff-fStMQgjiTufpD5Qo4eDA>.
And China, the third largest U.S. trading partner, is likely on a different
track as well, as Trump has singled out Beijing for much higher tariffs of
at least 145%
<https://archive.ph/o/8DEMG/https:/www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-trump-tariffs-trade-war-04-10-25/card/trump-tariffs-on-china-actually-145-says-white-house-3vTUxU4R2ZHKFMcEsoW6>
.



Trump this week said that his administration has been in touch with China
“every day,” although Chinese officials have denied any substantial contact
on trade. On Friday, Trump told reporters he had spoken with Chinese
President Xi Jinping, although he wouldn’t say when. Trump reiterated he
wouldn’t unilaterally drop tariffs on Chinese imports unless he sees
something “substantial” from Beijing.



For other nations, trade talks remain high-level and general, said people
familiar with the discussions, and some trading partners say the U.S. has
yet to transmit concrete requests for its negotiations. The European
Union’s economy commissioner, for instance, told The Wall Street Journal
this week that the 27-nation bloc is still awaiting specific demands from
the Trump administration. The USTR spokeswoman disputed that, saying the
agency has repeatedly made its framework known to the Europeans.



Meanwhile, Europe and others are trying to set their own parameters for
negotiations. The EU won’t negotiate changes to its value-added tax or
agricultural subsidies, Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said this week. And
the United Kingdom sought to take any changes to its food or automotive
safety standards off the table, saying those are decisions for its
government alone.
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