When President Trump talks about making deals with other countries, it is hard to know what he will do about taxes on goods from other countries. His team says this is planned, and he is using this confusion to help him.

Trump says the US does not need to sign any deals, but could sign many now. He says he wants good deals for everyone and does not care about other countries' markets. He says his team can talk about a deal, or he might just put taxes on goods by himself.

"I don't understand it," Chad Bown, who works at the Peterson Institute, wrote in an email.

Trump's team says his book "The Art of the Deal" proves he has a good plan. But many people around the world are worried. This has caused problems like big changes in the stock market and companies not hiring new workers. Many things are not clear. But Trump keeps saying new factories and jobs will come soon.

Trump wants to keep some taxes on goods from other countries in any agreement. He thinks these taxes can make a lot of money for the government. But other countries want to remove the taxes in a deal.

Trump recently said that taxes on goods from other countries are good for the country. He said using these taxes can make the country rich. This money can help pay off debts and make taxes much lower for people.

This year, the US government has collected $45.9 billion from taxes on things brought into the country. This is about $14.5 billion more than last year, according to a report. This amount of money could increase a lot. This is because of the different tax rates on imported goods. For example, some goods have a 10% tax. Goods from China have a 145% tax. Things like steel, aluminum, cars, and items from Mexico and Canada have a tax of up to 25%.

To pay back the big debt and lower taxes, Trump would need to get about $2 trillion each year from taxes on goods from other countries. This would be very hard to do without hurting the economy and getting less tax money in total. It is almost impossible to make this work.

The Republican government said that 17 of the 18 countries they trade with gave them lists of things they could agree on. This would be just the start of any trade talks.

But leaders from other countries have said they don't know exactly what Trump wants or how agreements can be made to last. They also know Trump made a trade deal with Mexico and Canada in 2020, but then put new taxes on goods from those same two countries this year.

When the Canadian leader met with Trump, he said a new agreement should be stronger. This is to stop Trump from putting taxes on things like fentanyl, which Canada thought was unfair this year.

Some things about it must change, Carney said.

The extra taxes on goods from China and the US make the talks difficult.

The US and China will start talking this weekend in Switzerland. They will probably try to make things calmer so they can have important talks later.

The main problem is that China makes most things in the world and sells a lot to other countries. This can hurt businesses in those countries. China doesn't buy many things for its own people, so other countries buy a lot from China. The U.S. wants to make trade more fair. But it has also put extra costs on goods from countries that could be friends and help protect their car and technology companies from China.

China is a very important part of this trade problem, Bessent said this week. What will happen with China?

A Chinese official said the US should stop using strong words and taxes to start talks.

On Tuesday, Lin said that if the U.S. wants to solve the problem by talking with China, it should stop threatening and pressuring them. He said they should talk as equals, respect each other, and help each other.

Someone asked Trump if he would lower the taxes on goods from China to start talks, and he said, "No."

The president said the Chinese government was wrong. He said he did not ask for the talks in Geneva.

Would the government need to say yes to any deals?

It's not always the case.

Trump put taxes on goods from other countries by himself. He used a law from 1977 to do this, and he did not ask Congress. Because of this, many people have started legal cases. The government also says they do not need Congress to agree to change these taxes.

Before now, presidents, like Trump, could only make small trade deals with other countries, according to a report.

Trump wants to talk about more than just taxes on goods. He also wants to talk about other rules, like those for car safety and sales tax in Europe. He wants other countries to change these rules if the US lowers its new taxes on goods. But other countries might not like the money the US gives to its companies.

A report said that the House and Senate would need to agree on a deal. This deal would change US laws and remove problems with trade.

Is it really a deal if Trump just decides?

If other countries don't agree with him, Trump said he might make deals inside the country and put taxes on goods. He actually did this before in April. When he announced these taxes, the money markets went down. So, he stopped some of the new taxes for 90 days and used a lower 10% tax while talks continue.

It looks like Trump might not put new taxes on goods if he thinks other countries are giving enough. But he could also remove the taxes without getting much back.

Trump often asks for a lot and then changes his mind later in talks, so we don't know how long he will keep doing this," said William Reinsch, an expert from a group in Washington. "But now it seems that countries that want fair talks where both sides give something are being told no.