Punishing US tariffs that have reached 145% on many Chinese products came into force in April
\n Beijing
\nChina said Friday it is evaluating a US offer for negotiations on tariffs but insisted Washington must be ready to scrap levies that have roiled global markets and supply chains before talks can begin.
\nPunishing US tariffs that have reached 145% on many Chinese products came into force in April while Beijing has responded with fresh 125% duties on imports from the United States.
\nHigh-end tech goods such as smartphones, semiconductors and computers have received a temporary reprieve from US tariffs.
\nUS President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that China has reached out for talks on the tariffs, and this week said he believed there was a \u201cvery good chance we\u2019re going to make a deal\u201d.
\nBeijing\u2019s commerce ministry on Friday said that it was the US that had reached out and that it was \u201ccurrently evaluating\u201d the offer.
\nBut, it said, any talks would first require concessions from the US side.
\n\u201cIf the US wants to talk, it should show its sincerity to do so, be prepared to correct its wrong practices and cancel unilateral tariffs,\u201d the ministry said.
\n\u201cIn any possible dialogue or talks, if the US side does not correct its wrong unilateral tariff measures, it just means the US side is completely insincere and will further damage the mutual trust between the two sides,\u201d it added.
\n\u201cSaying one thing and doing another, or even attempting coercion and blackmail under the guise of talks will not work,\u201d the commerce ministry said.
\nWu Xinbo, director of the Center for American Studies at Shanghai\u2019s Fudan University, said that Beijing would likely play hardball.
\n\u201cOf course the US hopes to start negotiations as soon as possible, but our attitude is: \u2018you must first take some action to show sincerity\u2019,\u201d Wu told AFP.
\nOnce the US revokes tariffs on China, \u201cwe can discuss our legitimate concerns\u201d, such as Washington\u2019s worries about unbalanced bilateral trade and Beijing\u2019s gripes over US efforts to \u201csuppress\u201d its technological development, he said.
\nDozens of countries face a 90-day deadline expiring in July to strike an agreement with Washington and avoid higher, country-specific rates.
\nBeijing, in contrast, has vowed to fight a trade war to the bitter end if needed, with a video posted on social media this week by its foreign ministry vowing to \u201cnever kneel down!\u201d.
\n\u201cChina\u2019s position has always been perfectly consistent,\u201d the commerce ministry said Friday.
\n\u201cIf it\u2019s fight, we will fight to the end; if it\u2019s talk, the door is wide open. The tariff war and trade war were unilaterally initiated by the US side.\u201d
\nOlive branch
\nChina has acknowledged global economic vicissitudes have strained its economy, long dependent on exports, with officials admitting that foreign-facing firms are facing difficulties.
\nData this week showed factory activity shrank in April, with Beijing blaming a \u201csharp shift\u201d in the global economy.
\nAnd on Wednesday data showed the US economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of the year Donald Trump\u2019s tariff plans triggered an import surge.
\nThe United States also ended tariff exemptions on Friday for goods shipped from China worth less than $800, a move which could have significant ramifications on consumers\u2019 purchasing habits.
\nJa-Ian Chong of the National University of Singapore said it remained unclear whether any progress can be made, despite the mounting economic need for both sides to make a deal.
\n\u201cNeither side wishes to look weak,\u201d he said.
\nAnalyst Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management said Beijing\u2019s latest comments represented the \u201cfirst olive branch\u201d in the gruelling trade war.
\n\u201cOn paper, both capitals are waving detente flags,\u201d he wrote in a note.
\n\u201cBut dig a layer deeper, and the path is still littered with landmines,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cChina\u2019s pledge to fight \u2018to the end\u2019 wasn\u2019t retired \u2014 just shoved behind softer soundbites \u2014 and the \u2018cancel duties first\u2019 stick remains a non-starter for the White House.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Punishing US tariffs that have reached 145% on many Chinese products came into force in April Beijing China said Friday it is evaluating a US offer for negotiations on tariffs but insisted Washington must be ready to scrap levies that have roiled global markets and supply chains before talks can begin. Punishing US tariffs that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":476108,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-476095","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n