As it announced that it would increase tariffs on American goods to 84% starting on Thursday, China once more pledged to “fight to the end” in the escalating trade war with the United States. After the United States, Beijing added a variety of countermeasures. The total tariff on Chinese imports was increased to 104% by President Trump. In a statement introducing its white paper on trade with the United States, the Ministry of Commerce stated, “If the U.S. insists on further escalating its economic and trade restrictions, China has the firm will and abundant means to take necessary countermeasures and fight to the end.” As many other nations have begun, the government declined to indicate whether it would negotiate with the White House. As a response to Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, China announced a 34% tariff on all goods imported from the United States, export restrictions on rare earth minerals, and a slew of other measures on Friday. After declaring that negotiations with China had ended, Trump added a 50 percent tariff on Chinese goods. China has not appeared to be interested in bargaining so far. The paper claims that the United States has not honored the promises it made in the phase 1 trade deal that was concluded during Trump’s first term. “If the U.S. truly wants to resolve issues through dialogue and negotiation, it should adopt an attitude of equality, respect, and mutual benefit,” said Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lin Jian on Wednesday. As an example, it said that a U.S. law that would ban TikTok unless it is sold by its Chinese parent company violates a promise that neither would “pressure the other party to transfer technology to its own individuals.”
After a potential deal to sell the app to American owners was put on hold, Trump signed an order to keep TikTok running for another 75 days last week. The paper also argued that taking into account trade in services and U.S. companies’ domestic Chinese branches, economic exchange between the two countries is “roughly in balance.” ByteDance representatives called the White House to indicate that China would no longer approve the deal until there could be negotiations about trade and tariffs. It says that China had a trade in services deficit with the U.S. of $26.57 billion in 2023, which is composed of industries like insurance, banking and accounting. The purpose of Trump’s tariffs was to close trade deficits with other nations, which were only calculated based on trades in goods that could be physically touched. “History and facts have proven that the United States’ increase in tariffs will not solve its own problems,” said the statement from the Chinese commerce ministry. “Instead, it will trigger sharp fluctuations in financial markets, push up U.S. inflation pressure, weaken the U.S. industrial base and increase the risk of a U.S. economic recession, which will ultimately only backfire on itself.
China raises counter-tariffs on U.S. to 84% as Trump’s trade war escalates
