Latest news with #tariffwar
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China says US is ‘provoking frictions' as tensions flare despite trade truce
China has accused the United States of 'provoking new economic and trade frictions' as it responded to US President Donald Trump's claims that Beijing had violated a trade truce agreed by the two nations last month, which paused their blistering tariff war. China was 'strictly implementing' the consensus of those trade talks, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said in a statement Monday, while blaming the US for taking steps that 'seriously undermine' the agreement. 'The United States has been unilaterally provoking new economic and trade frictions, exacerbating the uncertainty and instability of bilateral economic and trade relations,' the statement said. 'If the United States insists on its own way and continues to undermine China's interests, China will continue to take resolute and forceful measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,' it added. The comments come after Trump on Friday said China had 'TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US.' In a post on Truth Social, the US president said that he made a fast deal with China to 'save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation.' He added: 'So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!' The back and forth spotlights a ratcheting up of tensions between the US and China just weeks after the two sides reached the surprise trade truce in Geneva, which significantly dialed down the hefty tariffs that each imposed on the other in April. That agreement gave the two sides a 90-day window to hash out a broader deal, an effort that now appears imperiled as each side accuses the other of working against the spirit of that agreement. US officials have described talks as 'stalled' and suggested that the involvement of Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping is needed to jumpstart progress. A key point of contention has been Beijing's export controls on rare earth minerals and associated products, which were imposed as part of its retaliation against Trump's 'reciprocal' tariffs on Chinese goods. Following the talks, US officials had expected China to ease export restrictions of those minerals, which are an essential part of everything from iPhones and electric vehicles to big-ticket weapons like F-35 fighter jets and missile systems. But the restrictions haven't been lifted, causing intense displeasure inside the Trump administration and prompting a recent series of measures imposed on China, three administration officials told CNN last week. Meanwhile, Beijing accused the US last month of 'undermining' the consensus reached in Geneva, after Washington warned companies against using AI chips made by its national tech champion Huawei. In a further escalation of tensions, the US then last week also moved to limit critical technology sales to China and restrict the number of Chinese students studying in the US –spotlighting how the scope of their competition is much broader than just trade. In the Monday statement, China's Commerce Ministry hit out at these measures, saying the US has 'successively introduced a number of discriminatory restrictive measures against China after the Geneva Economic and Trade Talks, including issuing AI chip export control guidelines, stopping the sale of chip design software to China, and announcing the revocation of Chinese student visas.' Beijing, as well as other Asian capitals, is also feeling the pressure of trade frictions at home. China's manufacturing activity shrank for a second month in May, an official survey showed on Saturday. Tariffs imposed this year on Chinese goods entering the US, its largest export market, currently stand at 30%, not including any pre-existing duties. Trump administration officials have homed in on China's controls on exports of rare earths in their assessments of China's compliance with the agreement reached in Geneva. The deal saw the two sides dial back during the 90-day grace period mutual tariffs that had soared to well over 100%. It also included an agreement from China to 'suspend or remove' non-tariff countermeasures taken against the US since April 2. China on April 4 imposed export controls on seven rare earth minerals and associated products in what was seen as a retaliation against Trump's duties on its goods. Its export control regime does not ban exports outright but requires government approval for each shipment regardless of destination, enabling greater control over a supply chain that China has come to dominate globally. That system appeared to remain in place last month following the talks, CNN reporting showed. During an interview that aired Sunday with CBS' Face the Nation, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China was 'withholding some of the products that they agreed to release' in Geneva, referring to critical minerals. 'Maybe it's a glitch in the Chinese system, maybe it's intentional,' he added, noting that the issue would be 'ironed out' when Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have a call, which Bessent said he believes will happen 'very soon.' The two leaders are known to have last spoken on January 17, days before Trump's inauguration. China has defended its export control regime, describing it last week as 'in line with international practices' and 'not targeted at specific countries.' When asked about its export controls on rare earth minerals, part of a wider category of critical minerals, during a regular press briefing Friday, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Beijing was 'willing to strengthen dialogue and cooperation in the field of export controls with relevant countries and regions.'
CNN
21 hours ago
- Business
- CNN
China says US is ‘provoking frictions' as tensions flare despite trade truce
China has accused the United States of 'provoking new economic and trade frictions' as it responded to US President Donald Trump's claims that Beijing had violated a trade truce agreed by the two nations last month, which paused their blistering tariff war. China was 'strictly implementing' the consensus of those trade talks, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said in a statement Monday, while blaming the US for taking steps that 'seriously undermine' the agreement. 'The United States has been unilaterally provoking new economic and trade frictions, exacerbating the uncertainty and instability of bilateral economic and trade relations,' the statement said. 'If the United States insists on its own way and continues to undermine China's interests, China will continue to take resolute and forceful measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,' it added. The comments come after Trump on Friday said China had 'TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US.' In a post on Truth Social, the US president said that he made a fast deal with China to 'save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation.' He added: 'So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!' The back and forth spotlights a ratcheting up of tensions between the US and China just weeks after the two sides reached the surprise trade truce in Geneva, which significantly dialed down the hefty tariffs that each imposed on the other in April. That agreement gave the two sides a 90-day window to hash out a broader deal, an effort that now appears imperiled as each side accuses the other of working against the spirit of that agreement. US officials have described talks as 'stalled' and suggested that the involvement of Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping is needed to jumpstart progress. A key point of contention has been Beijing's export controls on rare earth minerals and associated products, which were imposed as part of its retaliation against Trump's 'reciprocal' tariffs on Chinese goods. Following the talks, US officials had expected China to ease export restrictions of those minerals, which are an essential part of everything from iPhones and electric vehicles to big-ticket weapons like F-35 fighter jets and missile systems. But the restrictions haven't been lifted, causing intense displeasure inside the Trump administration and prompting a recent series of measures imposed on China, three administration officials told CNN last week. Meanwhile, Beijing accused the US last month of 'undermining' the consensus reached in Geneva, after Washington warned companies against using AI chips made by its national tech champion Huawei. In a further escalation of tensions, the US then last week also moved to limit critical technology sales to China and restrict the number of Chinese students studying in the US –spotlighting how the scope of their competition is much broader than just trade. In the Monday statement, China's Commerce Ministry hit out at these measures, saying the US has 'successively introduced a number of discriminatory restrictive measures against China after the Geneva Economic and Trade Talks, including issuing AI chip export control guidelines, stopping the sale of chip design software to China, and announcing the revocation of Chinese student visas.' Beijing, as well as other Asian capitals, is also feeling the pressure of trade frictions at home. China's manufacturing activity shrank for a second month in May, an official survey showed on Saturday. Tariffs imposed this year on Chinese goods entering the US, its largest export market, currently stand at 30%, not including any pre-existing duties. Trump administration officials have homed in on China's controls on exports of rare earths in their assessments of China's compliance with the agreement reached in Geneva. The deal saw the two sides dial back during the 90-day grace period mutual tariffs that had soared to well over 100%. It also included an agreement from China to 'suspend or remove' non-tariff countermeasures taken against the US since April 2. China on April 4 imposed export controls on seven rare earth minerals and associated products in what was seen as a retaliation against Trump's duties on its goods. Its export control regime does not ban exports outright but requires government approval for each shipment regardless of destination, enabling greater control over a supply chain that China has come to dominate globally. That system appeared to remain in place last month following the talks, CNN reporting showed. During an interview that aired Sunday with CBS' Face the Nation, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China was 'withholding some of the products that they agreed to release' in Geneva, referring to critical minerals. 'Maybe it's a glitch in the Chinese system, maybe it's intentional,' he added, noting that the issue would be 'ironed out' when Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have a call, which Bessent said he believes will happen 'very soon.' The two leaders are known to have last spoken on January 17, days before Trump's inauguration. China has defended its export control regime, describing it last week as 'in line with international practices' and 'not targeted at specific countries.' When asked about its export controls on rare earth minerals, part of a wider category of critical minerals, during a regular press briefing Friday, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Beijing was 'willing to strengthen dialogue and cooperation in the field of export controls with relevant countries and regions.'
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
How US tech curbs pushed China to innovate, and where a ‘super AI' could emerge
Angela Zhang is a law professor at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law. Zhang is an expert on technology regulation and antitrust in China, and her research focus has recently been on artificial intelligence oversight. This interview first appeared in SCMP Plus . For other interviews in the Open Questions series, click here Advertisement How will the new US-China tariff war affect the Chinese technology sector and competition between the two countries on artificial intelligence ? Tariffs can affect the Chinese tech sector in two main ways. First, there are the direct effects. Higher tariffs make it harder for Chinese tech products to compete in the US market. If the tariffs stay relatively modest – like the levels we saw before 'Liberation Day' – Chinese suppliers might absorb some of the extra costs. Prices would go up a bit, but their products might still be competitive. But if the tariffs go up dramatically – say, to the 145 per cent that President [Donald] Trump proposed before China and the US reached an agreement in Geneva – then Chinese products would probably lose their price advantage and be effectively shut out of the US market. Second, there are indirect effects. As Chinese companies face more trade barriers from the US, they'll need to work even harder on cutting costs and scaling up. A good example is what we saw in response to the chip embargo – many Chinese tech firms started open-sourcing their AI models. That's a more cost-effective and collaborative way to keep developing advanced technologies when resources are tight. I expect we'll see similar strategies in other areas like electric vehicles, batteries and renewable energy. These firms are going to keep pushing hard to make their products even more competitive. Advertisement At the same time, they're not going to sit still. I think we'll see Chinese companies look more aggressively to other markets – Asia, Latin America, Africa. And we'll likely see more efforts to deepen trade with Europe, including offering technology transfers in exchange for market access. Of course, there's a lot of uncertainty ahead. But one thing is clear: Chinese firms are going to face serious challenges in the coming years under the Trump administration.
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
China's Factory Activity Contraction Eases After Trade War Truce
China's factory activity contracted at a slower rate in May after a reprieve in the tariff war with the US unclogged trade flows, even as weak domestic demand continues to weigh on the economy. The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index was 49.5, versus 49 in April, the National Bureau of Statistics said Saturday. That matched the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.
South China Morning Post
3 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Solidarity best in face of US tariff tensions
The United States' global tariff war has prompted China to strengthen economic ties with other leading trading partners. Advertisement Examples are the upgrading of the 15-year-old free-trade agreement (FTA) with the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and this week's inaugural summit in Malaysia between China, Asean and the Gulf Cooperation Council. China and Asean remained each other's top trading partner for the fifth consecutive year in 2024. After negotiations over two years, they have reached a consensus on an updated FTA, expected to come into effect as early as this year. This is a timely signal of unity and cooperation that will do no harm to either side's bargaining power in negotiations with the United States, where Asean members may expect to come under pressure to choose sides between China and the US. Southeast Asian nations were among the hardest hit by Washington's 'reciprocal tariffs', until the White House paused them. Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam faced duties of 49 per cent, 48 per cent and 46 per cent respectively. Advertisement In April, President Xi Jinping visited Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, where he called on Asian nations to unite against unilateralism and protectionism. Beijing has continued efforts to strengthen global economic ties amid tensions with the US.
