China’s government condemned the introduction of a long-threatened 10 percent tariff for Chinese imports by the Trump government on Sunday, while the door left open for discussions with the United States that could avoid a visible conflict.
Beijing will challenge President Donald Trump’s tariff at the World Trade Organization – a symbolic gesture – and not specified “countermeasures” in response to the levy that come into force on Tuesday, said China’s finance and trade ministries.
This answer heard shortly before the immediate escalation that China’s commercial showdown had marked in his first term as president, and repeated the more measured language that Beijing has used in the past few weeks.
Trump ordered 25 percent tariffs for Canadian and Mexican imports and 10 percent for goods from China on Saturday and said that Beijing had to stop the flow of fentanyl, a potentially fatal opioid, to the United States.
China’s weakened reaction marked a contrast to the direct retaliation and the heated language from Canada, a long-time US allied and Mexico, another top destination for US exports.
After Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had announced Canada’s reaction to US tariffs, he said that the coming days “will be difficult for Canadians and they will be difficult for Americans”. Trudeau said Canada would raise US goods worth 25 percent to 155 billion US dollars in response to the 25 percent tariffs of US President Donald Trump for most Canadian goods.
Trade rules have violated, says China
In a statement, China’s Ministry of Commerce said that Trump’s step “seriously violates the international trade rules and that the United States asked” operating the Frank dialogue and strengthening cooperation “.
The submission of a lawsuit at WTO could enable Beijing to win in messaging by campaigning for the rules that have long been supported by US administrations of both political parties. Beijing has made the same challenge for tariffs of up to 45 percent on Chinese electric vehicles by the European Union.
At the same time, a WTO profession does not represent any immediate costs or threat to Washington.
The WTO dispute settlement system has been effectively closed since 2019 when Trump blocked the appointment of judges to cope with calls. Since President Barack Obama, the United States has accused the WTO Agency Authority.
For weeks, the spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mao Ning, said, Beijing believes that there is no winner in a trade war.
Chinese officials were also encouraged by signs that Trump could have been looking for a more differentiated relationship with China since a conversation with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping last month.
Both Republicans and Democrats regard China as the greatest foreign policy and economic challenge for the United States.
Strengthening relationships with allies
China’s massive surplus – almost 1 trillion US dollar last year – is a susceptibility to Beijing. China’s exports in important industries, including cars, have grown the volume faster than value, which indicates that manufacturers try to gain sales overseas when demand stutters at home.
For this reason, analysts expected China to try to complete a deal with Trump early in order to alleviate the blow from the trade process through the USA
For months, China has prepared for the long-awaited Trump parade for tariffs by deepening relationships with allies, urging a certain independence in key areas of technology and has provided funds in order to support an endangered economy.
China’s economy, the second largest world in the world, reached its official growth destination of five percent last year, even as many complained about declining career prospects and the deteriorating standard of living.
China’s sharpest setback on Sunday was about Fentanyl, an area in which the bidges also asked Beijing, to propose the programs of the predecessor chemicals made in China that were required to produce the drug.
“Fentanyl is America’s problem,” said China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The Chinese team took advantage of extensive cooperation with the United States and achieved remarkable results.”
