China indicated on Sunday that it would not back down despite President Donald Trump’s threat of 100 percent tariffs. He urged America to resolve differences through dialogue instead of threats.
“China’s position is clear,” the Commerce Ministry said in a statement released online. We don’t want a tariff war, but we’re not afraid of it either.” This response came two days after Trump threatened to increase taxes on imports from China by November 1. The threat was made in response to new restrictions imposed by China on exports of rare earth minerals, a key component for many consumer and military products.
This development has created a crisis, derailing the possible meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping and the agreement on tariff war. In April, new tariffs from both sides briefly went above 100 percent.
Trump has raised taxes on imports from many US trading partners this year in an effort to extract concessions in exchange for tariff cuts. China is one of the few countries that has not lagged behind on the basis of its economic strength.
“Repeatedly threatening to impose higher tariffs is not the right way to engage with China,” the commerce ministry said in its online post, which was made by an unnamed spokesperson as part of a series of responses to questions from unspecified media companies.
The statement called for resolving any concerns through dialogue. “If the US side stubbornly sticks to its policy, China will take resolute measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” the post said.