BEIJING (Reuters) – China hopes the United States will show sincerity and take steps to correct its behavior, its commerce ministry said on Thursday, after both countries slapped new tariffs on each other’s goods this week in an escalating trade war.
China added $60 billion of U.S. products to its import tariff list on Tuesday to hit back at U.S. duties of $200 billion on Chinese goods that go into effect from Sept. 24.
Some analysts and American businesses are now concerned China could resort to other means of retaliation such as pressuring U.S. companies operating in China.
Alibaba’s billionaire co-founder Jack Ma, a known advocate for globalization, this week expressed his growing pessimism over the dispute, saying it would be a “mess” for all parties involved.
U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened further retaliation if Beijing takes aim at U.S. agricultural or industrial workers as he accused China of trying to sway U.S. elections by targeting farmers.
“China has been forced to take retaliatory measures, and they are entirely meant to protect China’s own interests,” commerce ministry spokesman Gao Feng said at a weekly news briefing in Beijing.
“They are also meant to protect global free trade order, and have nothing to do with domestic politics in the United States.”
He did not directly reply to questions asking if there will be a fresh round of trade talks between Beijing and Washington, which had appeared to be in the works prior to the latest tit-for-tat tariffs.
The deepening rift between China and the United States has fuelled concerns about job losses on both sides of the Pacific as tariffs threaten to erode trade flows and economic growth.
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