China retaliated against Donald Trump’s latest tariffs by hiking duties on all US goods, while calling the administration’s actions a “joke” and saying it no longer considers them worth matching.
Beijing will raise tariffs on all US goods from 84% to 125% starting April 12, the Ministry of Finance said on Friday, after the White House clarified that levies on Chinese goods rose to 145% this year.
“Given that American goods are no longer marketable in China under the current tariff rates, if the US further raises tariffs on Chinese exports, China will disregard such measures,” according to the statement.
However, China warned that it will “resolutely counterattack and fight to the end” if the US continues to infringe on its rights and interests. It also said America should take full responsibility for the damage caused by the tariffs.
Tensions between Beijing and Washington have spiraled beyond tit-for-tat tariff exchanges in recent days to impact services and people-to-people ties. Chinese authorities on Thursday moved to cut the number of American films allowed in theaters. Officials also warned citizens against traveling to the US and cautioned students about security risks in “certain states.”
The US and China now trade about $700 billion worth of goods each year. Without a deal to ease tensions, the higher tariffs will mean consumers and businesses on both sides are likely to face rising costs, as they scramble to adjust supply chains and reduce their tariff exposure.
So far, China has refused to cave to Trump’s pressure even as soaring duties are expected to weigh on the economy, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists cutting their 2025 growth forecast to 4% from 4.5%.
President Xi Jinping on Friday made his first public remarks on the escalating trade war, saying China remains confident and unafraid of any “unjustified suppression.”
“One that goes against the world risks being isolated themselves,” Xi told visiting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Reaffirming China’s stance that there are no winners in a tariff war, Xi added that the country’s development has never relied on the goodwill of others. “No matter how the external environment changes, China will stay confident, remain calm, and focus on managing its own affairs,” he said.
However, China warned that it will “resolutely counterattack and fight to the end” if the US continues to infringe on its rights and interests. It also said America should take full responsibility for the damage caused by the tariffs.
So I guess they will retaliate against any further tariffs as usual, but it will be through other means
Or they are saying that there isn’t likely to be much trade anyway with such high tariffs.
“Given that American goods are no longer marketable in China under the current tariff rates, if the US further raises tariffs on Chinese exports, China will disregard such measures,”
Or they are saying that there isn’t likely to be much trade anyway with such high tariffs.
And they are saying. Further retaliations won’t be through tariffs.
I think this is a particularly nuanced position on the part of China. They are attempting to deflate Trump’s political posturing. He could keep raising tariffs to make himself seem like a winner, so they chose to mock him and they backed that mockery up by saying we won’t respond to this line of harassment anymore because we have maximally defenses against it. If Trump was only doing tariffs, this would be the end of it, but China is anticipating that without the ability to continue narrative manipulation via tariffs, the US could begin expanding its attack on China via non-tariff means (and likely is already preparing to do so). So, instead of saying that they are no longer playing the game, they are saying that they are no longer effected by this particular line of attack and that they will continue defending against any new lines of attack.
I don’t know if they will take such actions to respond to further tariff hikes, but it seems like they might not.
You right, you right
If China started selling off their US currency reserves, Trump’s handlers would give him some lube and knee pads, and shove him into a plane to Beijing to apologize.
The value of USD is already falling. If China dumps a bunch of cheap dollars into the market, it could deliver the final death blow. I think China might want to wait for the right time to do that. It’s going to be expensive, and you want that sort economic attack to have the best chance of permanently ruining USA.
