China vows to ‘fight to the end’ as Trump tariff war rages, EU calls for negotiated solution to problems
China refused to bow to what it called “blackmail” from the United States as a global trade war ignited by President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs showed little sign of abating on Tuesday, even as battered stock markets steadied.
Beijing’s rebuke came after Trump threatened to ratchet up tariffs on U.S. imports from the world’s No. 2 economy to more than 100% on Wednesday in response to China’s decision to match the “reciprocal” duties Trump announced last week.
“The U.S. side’s threat to escalate tariffs against China is a mistake on top of a mistake, once again exposing the American side’s blackmailing nature,” China’s commerce ministry said.
“If the U.S. insists on having its way, China will fight to the end.”
In parallel, Chinese state holding companies vowed to increase share investment while a slew of listed firms announced share buybacks as Beijing stepped up efforts to stabilise a stock market rocked by U.S. tariff woes.
The announcements by companies including China Chengtong Holdings Group SASACA.UL and China Reform Holdings Corp come a day after state fund Central Huijin said it would increase share holdings to steady markets.
China’s stock market .SSEC rebounded on Tuesday, clawing back some of Monday’s 7% slump, which was fuelled by trade war and global recession fears.
Moreover, China’s state planner held a meeting with private domestic companies, including Trina Solar 688599.SS, ride-hailing company Didi and Goertek 002241.SZ, to hear suggestions about how to deal with additional U.S. tariffs.
“In the face of external risks and challenges such as the imposition of tariffs by the United States, we must unify our thoughts and actions with the decision-making,” said Zheng Shanjie, chairman of China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).
In the meantime, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on Tuesday for China to ensure a negotiated solution to problems caused by the sweeping import tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
In a phone call with China’s Premier Li Qiang, von der Leyen “stressed the responsibility of Europe and China, as two of world’s largest markets, to support a strong reformed trading system, free, fair and founded on a level playing field,” her office said in a statement.
Both politicians discussed setting up a mechanism to track possible trade diversion caused by the tariffs, von der Leyen’s office said, as the EU fears China will redirect cheap exports from the U.S. to Europe.
