China holds back after Trump's 104% tariffs, but could still retaliate
Photo: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian (Getty Images)
China has vowed to take decisive and effective measures to protect its rights and interests after US President Donald Trump imposed 104% tariffs on Chinese imports, says Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian, reports Reuters.
“The US continues to abuse tariffs to pressure China, China firmly opposes this and will never accept this kind of bullying,” he said at a regular press conference.
According to him, if the United States really wants to solve the problem through dialogue and negotiations, it should take a position of equality, respect, and mutual benefit.
President Donald Trump's 104% tariffs on goods from China came into effect on April 9. The tariffs increased by another 50% after Beijing refused to remove retaliatory tariffs on American goods by the deadline Trump set.
Beijing's response
According to Bloomberg, China has not yet announced any retaliatory actions, in contrast to February and March, when China responded only minutes after the previous rounds of US tariffs were launched.
So far, China and the United States have been engaged in a cycle of tit-for-tat tariffs since shortly after Trump returned to the White House in January. The US president has yet to speak to his Chinese counterpart, President Xi Jinping, more than two months after his inauguration.
Beijing may still respond later. China's top leaders are scheduled to meet today to discuss measures to support domestic consumption and capital markets in the wake of Trump's tariffs.
China waited more than a day before taking action in response to Trump's tariff announcement last week, with the Chinese statement made on a holiday, just after 6 pm local time on Friday.
Earlier, China vowed to “fight till the end” in the tariff war with Trump, calling the US tariffs blackmail.
