U.S. companies are making a last-ditch appeal to be spared from the latest round of duties U.S. President Donald Trump last week threatened to add a 10 percent tariff as of Sept. 1 to virtually every Chinese import.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and his staff are now under pressure to revise an initial list targeting more than 3,800 Chinese product lines.

The U.S. Trade Representative office (USTR) is planning to publish the final list by early next week. In the meantime, companies are making a last-ditch attempt at convincing the Trump administration not to impose duties or to drop items they import from the tariff list.

U.S. firms are complaining about the lack of certainty for their business decisions and say a couple weeks’ notice isn’t enough time.

“Firms don’t plan by tweet,” said Jon Gold, of the U.S. National Retail Federation. “These are all contracts that are already executed and cargo is on the water.”

After Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed on yet another tariff truce in late June, U.S. businesses didn’t expect another escalation this soon and felt like they had more time to plan, Gold added. Companies and trade associations are still trying to weigh in with the Trump administration to make their case and potentially get their products taken off the list.

The proposed list of goods, which the USTR published in mid-May, includes consumer items like smartphones, laptops, clothes and toys.

Jay Foreman, the chief executive of Basic Fun! toy company in Florida, which makes the Lite-Brite and other products, said he’ll have no choice but to reduce employees by the same percentage as the duty.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow this week signaled the tariffs could be called off before Sept. 1 if China shows goodwill on buying American agriculture goods and getting back to the negotiating table.

“The president and our team is planning for a Chinese visit in September,” Kudlow said Tuesday on CNBC. “Movement toward a good deal would be very positive and might change the tariff situation. But then again, it might not.”

Win Cramer, the chief executive officer of California-based JLab Audio, said he was in Minneapolis on Wednesday visiting with two retailers — and instead of talking about holiday plans, they were discussing tariffs. It’s impossible to plan because of the uncertainty of what Trump will do next, he said. (SD-Agencies)