China’s 84% retaliatory tariffs on US goods, announced on Wednesday, are due to come into effect on Thursday
Hours before China’s reciprocal tariffs are to take effect, the country’s commerce minister has said the ‘reciprocal tariffs’ by the US are “a serious infringement of the legitimate interests of all countries”.
In a report in Chinese state media Xinhua, an official from the ministry was earlier quoted as saying that no one would win in a trade war.
I want to emphasize that there is no winner in a trade war, and that China does not want a trade war. But the Chinese government will by no means sit by when the legitimate rights and interests of its people are being hurt and deprived,” the official said on Wednesday.
For President Xi, there is only one politically viable response to Trump’s latest threat: Bring it on! Having already surprised domestic audiences with a forceful 34% reciprocal tariff, any appearance of backing down would be politically untenable,” says Diana Choyleva, founder and chief economist at Enodo Economics, a forecasting firm.”