Reuters, Washington/Beijing :
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday warned Beijing not to retaliate in an escalating trade dispute after China said it “will never surrender to external pressure.”
The trade war between the world’s top two economies heightened on Friday after Trump hiked tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, saying China reneged on earlier commitments made during months of negotiations.
Beijing vowed to respond to the latest U.S. tariffs. “As for the details, please continue to pay attention. Copying a U.S. expression – wait and see,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a daily news briefing on Monday.
Trump warned China not to intensify the trade dispute and urged their leaders to continue working to reach a deal. “China should not retaliate-will only get worse,” he said on Twitter.
“I say openly to President Xi & all of my many friends in China that China will be hurt very badly if you don’t make a deal because companies
will be forced to leave China for other countries,” Trump wrote.
Global equities fell on Monday as hopes of an imminent trade deal were crushed.
The Republican U.S. president last week also ordered U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to begin imposing tariffs on all remaining imports from China, a move that would affect an additional $300 billion worth of goods.
Asked about the threat, Geng said: “We have said many times that adding tariffs won’t resolve any problem … We have the confidence and the ability to protect our lawful and legitimate rights.”
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday warned Beijing not to retaliate in an escalating trade dispute after China said it “will never surrender to external pressure.”
The trade war between the world’s top two economies heightened on Friday after Trump hiked tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, saying China reneged on earlier commitments made during months of negotiations.
Beijing vowed to respond to the latest U.S. tariffs. “As for the details, please continue to pay attention. Copying a U.S. expression – wait and see,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a daily news briefing on Monday.
Trump warned China not to intensify the trade dispute and urged their leaders to continue working to reach a deal. “China should not retaliate-will only get worse,” he said on Twitter.
“I say openly to President Xi & all of my many friends in China that China will be hurt very badly if you don’t make a deal because companies
will be forced to leave China for other countries,” Trump wrote.
Global equities fell on Monday as hopes of an imminent trade deal were crushed.
The Republican U.S. president last week also ordered U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to begin imposing tariffs on all remaining imports from China, a move that would affect an additional $300 billion worth of goods.
Asked about the threat, Geng said: “We have said many times that adding tariffs won’t resolve any problem … We have the confidence and the ability to protect our lawful and legitimate rights.”
