Trump postpones the imposition of duties on Chinese products and these are the reasons

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House administration has decided to postpone tariffs on some Chinese products that were supposed to go into effect in September, until mid-December, a move that may signal a truce in the trade war between the two economic giants, authorities said on Friday.

The deferral decision included computers, video game consoles, specific games and computer monitors.

The administration of US President Donald Trump published a 21-page list of a wide range of Chinese goods covered by a 10 percent tariff decree.

The products on the list range from frozen fish to fireworks, sports equipment, baby clothes and accessories. The list was posted on the USTR's website.

The announcement came as the Chinese Commerce Ministry said Chinese Vice Premier Liu He held telephone talks with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and US Treasury Secretary Stephen Mnuchin.

China lodged a strong protest over a US proposal to increase tariffs on Chinese goods from next month, the ministry said.

Why postpone?
For his part, Trump said Tuesday that his administration's decision to postpone tariffs on some Chinese imports came to avoid hurting American shoppers ahead of the Christmas holidays.

He said trade talks with China were "very fruitful" after telephone talks between US and Chinese negotiators. "We had very good talks with China," he said.

Trump's concern about rising Chinese product prices may be one reason for the decision to postpone tariffs, especially given the rise in US consumer prices.

The US Labor Department said on Tuesday that its consumer price index rose 0.3 percent in July.

Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics said the consumer price index showed an acceleration in prices for goods such as furniture and flooring "affected by tariffs, and is an example of what would happen if the administration imposes duties on a wide range of consumer goods imported from China next month."

Markets rebound
The US retail sector and global financial markets reacted to the news, which was seen as pleasant.

US stocks rose in today's trading after Trump's decision to postpone the application of the new fees.

The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones US Equity Index rose 1.9% following the administration's decision to signal an informal truce in the US-China trade war. Technology investors welcomed the news of these exceptions.

Oil prices also jumped nearly 4% in today's trading as trade tensions between the US and China eased following the postponement.