Trump says will always put America first at Davos forum

President Donald Trump delivers a speech to the World Economic Forum, Friday, Jan. 26, 2018, in Davos. [Photo: AP/Evan Vucci]

U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday in Davos, Switzerland, that he would always put America first when it came to trade, but "America First" does not mean "America alone".

"As President of the United States, I will always put America first... America first does not mean America alone. When the United States grows, so does the world," Trump told global business elite at the World Economic Forum (WEF).

In his speech at the ongoing forum, Trump pledged to reform the international trading system for broadly-shared prosperity.

"As the United States pursues domestic reforms to unleash jobs and growth, we are also working to reform the international trading system so that it promotes broadly-shared prosperity and rewards those who play by the rules," said the U.S. president.

He said the U.S. supports free trade, but highlighted that it needs to be "fair and reciprocal."

According to Trump, the United States is prepared to negotiate "mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreements with all countries" including "the countries in TPP."

The Trans-Pacific Partnership, also known as TPP trade deal, originally involved Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States.

"We have agreements with several of them already. We would consider negotiating with the rest, either individually, or perhaps as a group, if it is in all of our interests," said Trump.

Saying "America is roaring back," the U.S. president said his administration has dramatically cut taxes to "make America competitive".

According to Trump, the U.S. lowered its corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, and the tax cut bill is expected to raise the average American's household income by more than 4,000 U.S. dollars.

Calling on business leaders to bring business, jobs and investments to the United States, Trump said "It is the perfect time."

Citing the American multinational technology company Apple as an example, the U.S. president said the company had announced it would bring 245 billion dollars in overseas profits home to America. Their total investment into the U.S. economy will be more than 350 billion dollars over the next five years, according to Trump.