Source: We’ll fight at any cost: China on Trump’s $100bn tariff threat | The Herald April 9, 2018
BEIJING. — China will take “comprehensive countermeasures” and fight “at any cost” US President Donald Trump’s directive to authorities to consider tariffs on $100 billion worth of Chinese products, a top official said on Friday. The US, the world’s largest economy, has a trade deficit of almost $500 billion with China, the world’s second largest economy.
The statement by China came a day after Trump ordered the US Trade Representative (USTR) to consider imposing tariffs on an additional $100 billion in Chinese imports. US President Donald Trump ordered his administration to put together a plan for an additional $100 billion in tariffs on imports from China, escalating a trade fight with Beijing that has unnerved financial markets around the world.
In a statement issued by the White House last week Thursday, Trump criticised China’s tit-for-tat response to his announcement of 25 percent tariffs on some $50 billion in imports related to Beijing’s alleged theft of US intellectual property. Beijing on Wednesday released a list of more than 100 US products, including agricultural commodities such as soya beans, targeted for retaliatory tariffs.
“Rather than remedy its misconduct, China has chosen to harm our farmers and manufacturers,” Mr Trump said. “In light of China’s unfair retaliation, I have instructed the (US trade representative) to consider whether $100 billion of additional tariffs would be appropriate and, if so, to identify the products upon which to impose such tariffs.”
In another signal that Trump was preparing for a long trade battle with Beijing, he said he had instructed his agriculture secretary to “implement a plan to protect our farmers and agricultural interests” from Chinese retaliation. Beijing condemned the threats even as Chinese analysts warned the US that it stood more to lose politically from a worsening tit-for-tat trade dispute that has unnerved global markets.
On Friday, a Ministry of Commerce spokesman said China was prepared to adopt “comprehensive countermeasures” in its dispute with the US, adding: “China doesn’t want a trade war, but we’re not afraid to fight a trade war.”
Aides to Trump have succeeded in calming financial markets over the past two days by arguing that the tariffs on more than 1 300 products from China – first proposed last month and detailed earlier last week -were meant to trigger a negotiation.
Trump’s latest threat caused an immediate reaction with US stock futures tumbling by at least 1 percent.
On Friday, Asian markets dipped on the opening following the latest developments. Japan’s Topix index fell 0,28 percent in early morning trading, while South Korea’s Kospi was off by 0,29 percent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 by 0,23 percent.
Kerry Craig, a global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management in Melbourne, said: “Investors will lack clarity on what this means for the markets as the pendulum continues to swing. While escalation remains a distinct possibility, both sides recognise that there are no winners in a trade war.”
Craig said the fraying trade relations between Washington and Beijing would “lead to more market volatility”.
China will hit back with comprehensive countermeasures if US continues its unilateral, protectionist practices, a spokesperson with the ministry of commerce said.
“On Sino-US trade, China has made its position very clear. We don’t want a trade war, but we are not afraid of such a war,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua news agency. “Concerning the US statement, we will not only listen to the words but also watch the deeds,” the spokesperson said.
If the US continues its protectionism regardless of opposition from China and the international community, “China will fight to the end at any cost to protect the interests of the country and the people. The conflict was initiated by the United States as provocation,” the official said.
China will continue reforms and opening up, safeguard multilateral trade, and promote trade and investment liberalisation, the spokesperson said.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang also made similar pledge when asked to comment on Trump’s direction. “We have heard what the US has said publicly about imposing tariffs, and we will also monitor what moves it will take. If the US disregards the objections of China and the international community and persists in unilateralism and trade protectionism, the Chinese side will follow through to the end and fight back resolutely,” Lu said.
“China will take new comprehensive countermeasures to resolutely safeguard the interests of our nation and our people at whatever cost,” he said in a statement posted on the foreign ministry website.
By provoking a trade conflict with China, the US side, in fact, mounted a challenge to the world multilateralism and free trade regime with its unilateralism and protectionism, Lu said.
Wei Jianguo, former vice-minister of the commerce ministry, said that China may cut down service trade with the US in view of the current trade conflict. “China needs to have some countermeasures ready if the trade skirmish drags on,” he told the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post.
The trade spate which is deteriorating into a trade war between the top two economies of the world began with Trump imposing tariffs on steel and aluminium imports into the US.
China retaliated by imposing additional tariffs worth about three billion dollars on 128 US products.
Trump, while demanding China to reduce the $375 billion by $100 billion, retaliated with tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese products. In retaliation, China announced plans to impose new tariffs on 106 American products.
China said the date of implementation of the new tariff regime will depend on when the US government imposes the tariffs on Chinese products. Last week Thursday, China went a step further, raising a formal complaint with the World Trade Organisation over the US’ decision to slap duties on Chinese steel and aluminium products.
But the US and Chinese officials are still trying to play down the possibility of a full-scale trade war, the Post report said. — Reuters.
COMMENTS