Donald Trump has met Apple CEO Tim Cook to discuss trade
President Donald Trump has met Apple CEO Tim Cook at the White House to discuss trade as he engages in negotiations around the globe.
Mr Trump tweeted before the meeting that they would be "talking about many things, including how the US has been treated unfairly for many years, by many countries, on trade".
The president met Mr Cook in the Oval Office a day after the leader of the technology giant attended his state dinner for French President Emmanuel Macron.
Happening Now: #Apple execs @tim_cook and Lisa Jackson among the 130 guests at #StateDinner. #Macron #WhiteHouse pic.twitter.com/TL6AuWFikL
— Raj Mathai (@rajmathai) April 24, 2018
Mr Trump has had a fraught relationship with the electronics company, criticising Apple on Twitter over its decision not to cooperate with law enforcement on breaching its phone encryption and over the size of the screens on iPhones.
But Mr Trump has praised the California-based company's planned investment in the US after the passage of last year's tax cuts.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the primary focus of the meeting was trade. Mr Cook also met White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow.
Looking forward to my meeting with Tim Cook of Apple. We will be talking about many things, including how the U.S. has been treated unfairly for many years, by many countries, on trade.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 25, 2018
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is expected to travel to China soon for trade talks as both countries have proposed tariffs of $50bn on the other's products. Mr Trump has said he is looking to impose tariffs of up to $100bn more on Chinese goods.
The administration is also engaged in negotiations with Canada and Mexico on a revised form of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Mr Trump attacked during his 2016 Republican campaign.
