PDB Afternoon Bulletin | April 25th, 2025: China Blinks Again: Beijing Lifts Tariffs On Some US Goods & India, Pakistan Exchange Gunfire As Tensions Soar
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First, with their economy bucking under the weight of steep US tariffs, it appears that China might be making a move towards de-escalation, reportedly granting exemptions for certain critical goods, though officials in Beijing are staying quiet about the development.

Later in the show, Indian and Pakistani soldiers briefly exchanged fire across the line of control in disputed Kashmir on Friday as fears mount that the two nuclear-armed neighbors are moving towards a larger conflict. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. It looks like China may have just blinked in the trade war with the U.S.,

Despite Beijing's hardline rhetoric and vows not to back down to U.S. economic pressure, signs emerged Friday that relief may be coming for companies hit hard by the tariffs. According to the American Chamber of Commerce in China, the communist regime has granted some American imports exemptions from its 125% tariffs and is considering lifting other levies on items critical to certain Chinese industries. That's according to a report from the Financial Times.

Michael Hart, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, said Friday that certain business sectors, including aviation and industrial chemicals, have already been notified of the exemptions and that China's Ministry of Commerce is reviewing additional sectors impacted by their tariffs, such as healthcare imports.

One area of particular interest to Beijing is reportedly imports of the industrial chemical ethane. The U.S. is a major supplier of ethane to the communist regime, which needs it for their obviously large plastics industry. There are few alternative suppliers of ethane outside the U.S., so the disruption from the tariffs has already severely impacted their domestic plastics sector.

The developments are the clearest signal yet that Beijing is interested in de-escalating the trade war, as their export orders dry up and factories shut down.

as we've been tracking this week on the PDB. The move by Beijing follows remarks from President Trump and members of his administration that the current U.S. tariff war is unsustainable and that they're in contact with Chinese officials about lowering rates. The American Chamber of Commerce in China said the U.S. Commerce Department was also in the process of reviewing the impact of certain duties to find areas where they can ease the financial burden.

Hart told the Financial Times, quote, "...it's good to see that both sides are reviewing the tariffs, and it looks like they're starting to produce lists of exclusions for specific categories," end quote. While it's not entirely clear where all the reported exemptions apply, a number of aviation companies said that they had been informed Thursday evening that China had granted waivers on a certain number of aerospace equipment parts, including engines and landing gears.

Hart said some pharmaceutical companies also reported this week that they'd been able to import drugs to China without tariffs, though those exemptions appear to be drug-specific rather than industry-wide.

Additionally, representatives for a memory chip design firm said that the China Semiconductor Industry Association informed them earlier this week that tariff waivers have been granted for eight types of microchips. The impact of the tariffs on this sector was reportedly more severe than Beijing had expected, prompting the adjustment. That's according to sources who spoke with Reuters. According to a separate source that spoke with Reuters,

China's Ministry of Commerce has now set up a task force to collect a list of items for possible exemptions. A list of 131 product categories said to be under consideration was circulating among trade groups and on Chinese social media platforms on Friday, though it's yet to be verified. A senior analyst with the conference board's China Center think tank told Reuters, quote, As a quid pro quo move, it could provide a potential way to de-escalate tensions, but added, quote,

It's clear that neither the US nor China want to be the first in reaching out for a deal." Notably, Beijing is staying quiet about the developments, making no official statement about any adjustments to their tariffs. When asked about the reports, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry said that they were not aware of any exemptions and reiterated their claim that there have been no official talks with the Trump administration about mutually lowering rates.

In contrast, or in contradiction, President Trump said Friday in an interview with Time magazine that the U.S. and China were, in fact, holding informal talks on trade and that Chinese President Xi Jinping had called him, though he did not elaborate on when the call took place or what was discussed.

Trump relented from his hardline stance against the communist regime earlier this week, expressing confidence that the U.S. and China would soon reach a, quote, fair deal. He said the U.S. is, quote, going to be very nice with China and that final tariffs will not be anywhere near as high as the current 145% rate.

The news of exemptions comes as Chinese warehouses reportedly fill with unsent goods and cargo volumes through the port of Los Angeles have sharply declined. While there is likely still a long road ahead before a lasting trade deal is potentially made, well, it appears economic relief could be in sight.

Coming up next, Indian and Pakistani soldiers briefly exchange fire across what's known as the Line of Control in disputed Kashmir. I'll have those details when we come back. Hey, Mike Baker here.

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Welcome back to the Afternoon Bulletin. Fears continue to mount that nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan are moving closer to war, as tensions rise following a terror attack earlier this week on the Indian side of the disputed Kashmir region that left 26 tourists dead and wounded more than a dozen. India immediately blamed Pakistan for aiding and abetting the group that's claimed responsibility.

On Friday, the fragile situation escalated further as troops from India and Pakistan exchanged fire across what's known as the Line of Control in disputed Kashmir.

Local media reports say Pakistani soldiers fired first at an Indian position near a border post in the region of Lipa, prompting Indian soldiers to respond in kind, according to The New York Times. An Indian official said the exchange involved only light arms and was brief, adding that no casualties had been recorded on either side.

The incident rattled international observers, as fighting in Kashmir, historically, the scene of repeated skirmishes between India and Pakistan, has been relatively contained since a renewed ceasefire agreement back in 2021. But as we've been covering extensively this week, following the deadly terror attack on Tuesday, which was claimed by the Pakistan-based terror group the Resistance Front, relations between India and Pakistan have all but collapsed.

India and Pakistan have since closed their respective borders and ordered the expulsion of each other's citizens in a series of tit-for-tat diplomatic retaliations. India subsequently suspended a critical water-sharing treaty between the two nations. That's a move that could seriously damage Pakistan's agriculture sector. That makes up about 25% of their economy.

Pakistan called that move a, quote, act of war and threatened retaliation with, quote, full force across a complete spectrum of national power. They've since shuttered their airspace to Indian aircraft and halted all bilateral trade with their neighbor.

Indian security forces, meanwhile, have launched a massive manhunt in the mountains near the attack site in southern Kashmir. On Friday, Indian troops demolished the houses of two suspected militants and issued wanted posters with sketches of three suspected gunmen to locals. Leaders in New Delhi have accused the Pakistani government of having links to the militant group suspected of being behind the attack, though India has not yet provided specific evidence of Islamabad's alleged involvement.

Officials in Islamabad have called any attempts to link Pakistan to the killings as, quote, frivolous, accusing India of engaging in a campaign to, quote, malign the Pakistan government. As tensions intensify, a spokesman for the UN urged both countries to refrain from further escalation. The UN spokesman said, quote, "...we very much appeal to both the governments to exercise maximum restraint and to ensure that the situation and the developments we've seen do not deteriorate any further."

Any issues between Pakistan and India, we believe, can be and should be resolved peacefully through meaningful mutual engagement." Well, that is a classic UN statement. And that, my friends, is the PDB Afternoon Bulletin for Friday, the 25th of April. Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com.

and don't forget to set your watches for 10 p.m. this evening. Yes, it's Friday, and of course, every Friday evening at 10 p.m. on The First TV, a new episode of our extended weekend show, the PDB Situation Report, hits the airwaves. It's also available, of course, on our YouTube channel, at President's Daily Brief, and podcast platforms everywhere. Now, this week's excellent guests include Christopher Balding. He's a leading expert on the Chinese economy. As

As well as intelligence analyst Sid Kishore, he'll be providing insight into the current conflict between India and Pakistan. Now, here's a hint. It's never a good thing when two nuclear-armed nations start shooting each other. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back over the weekend with the PDB Situation Report. Until then, well, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.

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