When President Trump talks about trade deals, it is hard to understand what will happen with taxes on goods. His team says this is planned, and they call it 'strategic uncertainty' to help him.

Trump says the US doesn't need to make agreements, but could make many quickly. He wants good deals for everyone and doesn't worry about other countries' businesses. He says his team can talk about a deal, or he might just put taxes on products himself.

Chad Bown, who works at the Peterson Institute, wrote in an email that he cannot understand it.

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 the stock market to go up and down a lot. Companies have stopped hiring new workers. People feel unsure about what will happen. This is happening even though Trump keeps saying that new factories and jobs will appear soon.

Trump wants to keep some taxes on goods from other countries. He thinks these taxes can help the government get a lot of money because it owes a lot. But other countries want to make a deal to take away these taxes.

Trump recently said that taxes on goods from other countries are good for the country. He thinks these taxes can make the country rich. He said this money will help pay off debt and lower taxes for people.

This year, the US government has collected $45.9 billion from taxes on imported goods. This is about $14.5 billion more than last year. These taxes might go up a lot because of the different tax rates on goods from countries like China, Mexico, and Canada, and on things like steel and aluminum.

For Trump to pay back the big debt and lower taxes, his tariffs would need to collect a lot of money each year. This would be very hard to do without hurting the economy and getting less tax money.

The Republican government said that 17 of the 18 main countries they trade with have given them offers. These offers show what they are willing to agree on. But agreeing on these things is only the first step for any trade talks.

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

During a meeting with Trump on Tuesday, the Canadian Prime Minister said the new agreement should be stronger to stop Trump from putting taxes on fentanyl again.

Some things about it need to change, Carney said.

High taxes on goods from China and the US make the talks difficult. The US Treasury Secretary says these taxes cannot continue.

The first talks between the U.S. and China will start this weekend in Switzerland. They will probably only talk about how to make things calmer so they can have important discussions later.

China makes and sells a lot of things to other countries. This can hurt businesses in those countries. China sells so much because people in China don't buy enough. The US wants to change this. But the US has also put taxes on things from countries that could help the US protect their businesses from China.

"China is the biggest part of this trade problem," Bessent said this week. "What should we do about China?"

China says the US should stop using strong words and taxes to restart talks.

On Tuesday, Lin said that if the U.S. wants to solve the problem by talking, they should stop threatening and talk to China as equals, showing respect for each other.

On Wednesday, someone asked Trump if he would lower taxes on things from China to have talks. Trump said, "No."

The president said China was wrong when they said his government wanted to have talks in Geneva.

Does Congress need to agree to any deals?

It's possible that's not always the case.

Trump put taxes on things from other countries by himself. He did not ask Congress first. He used a law from 1977 to do this. Because of this, many people have sued him. The government also says they can change these taxes without asking Congress.

Before, presidents like Trump could only make small deals about trade with other countries.

It is difficult because Trump also wants to talk about things that are not tariffs, like rules for safe cars and taxes in Europe. He wants other countries to change these rules and taxes if the U.S. lowers the new tariffs he started. But other countries might not like that the U.S. helps its own companies with money.

The report said that the House and Senate would have to agree to finish a deal that would change some US laws.

Is it a good deal if Trump just says yes?

If other countries don't agree, Trump said he might make special deals for the US and decide how much to tax goods from other countries. He already did this in April with some taxes. These taxes made money markets go down, so he stopped some of them for 90 days. During this time, he put a lower 10% tax on the goods while they talk and try to agree.

It looks like Trump might not use the new taxes if he thinks other countries are giving enough.

Trump often asks for a lot at the start and then asks for less later in the talks, so we will see how long he continues this, said William Reinsch, an expert from a group in Washington. But now it is clear that countries who want normal trade talks where both sides give something are being refused.