Donald Trump reportedly set to unveil trade crackdown

Jonathan Ernst | Reuters

President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping leave after an opera performance at the Forbidden City in Beijing, China, November 8, 2017.

President Donald Trump will unveil plans for an aggressive trade crackdown over the coming weeks, according to a report by Politico.

The White House is likely to introduce new tariffs designed to combat China’s alleged unfair trade practices, the report said, citing administration sources that could not be verified by CNBC. Trump’s administration could reportedly begin finalizing decisions on trade fights ranging from steel imports to policies regarding intellectual property as soon as this week.

Senior officials have marked Trump’s State of the Union address at the end of January as a provisional deadline to announce America’s trade measures, the report said.

Speaking in Beijing in November, Trump said the current relationship between the world’s leading economies had been a “very one-sided and unfair one,” before adding “it is just not sustainable.” The U.S. leader has frequently identified apparent trade imbalances as a problem he wants to resolve.

By turning to trade policy, Trump is set to refocus on one of a handful of major policy areas on which the president can act without having to rely on Congress. A spokesperson for the White House was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.

Read the full Politico report here.