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• Beijing will file suit in WTO over Trump tariffs
• US president goads ‘panicked’ China, says they played it wrong
• EU divided on how best to respond to tariffs
BEIJING: China announced additional tariffs of 34 per cent on US goods on Friday, striking back at US President Donald Trump and escalating a trade war that has fed fears of a recession and triggered a global stock market rout that showed no sign of slowing on Friday.
In the standoff between the world’s two biggest economies, Beijing also announced controls on exports of some rare earths, while Trump doubled down as well, vowing not to change course.
China added 11 US bodies to the “unreliable entity” list, which allows Beijing to take punitive actions against foreign entities, including firms linked to arms sales to Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.
Other impacted nations like Canada have also readied retaliation in a mounting trade war after Trump raised US tariff barriers to their highest level in more than a century, leading to a plunge in world financial markets.
Countries and companies alike weighed their options and the EU readied for talks with US officials. Potential responses could include retaliatory tariffs or other measures that could escalate a trade war that has raised fears of recession.
Investment bank J.P. Morgan said it now sees a 60pc chance of the global economy entering recession by year-end, up from 40pc previously.
China — one of the United States’ top trading partners — was first, announcing that tariffs of 34pc on all American imports would come into effect from April 10 and saying it would file a suit at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) over the tariffs.
China also said it would impose export controls on a number of rare earth elements used in medical technology and consumer electronics.
‘China panicked’
Trump’s team has played down the market turbulence as an adjustment that would prove beneficial in the long run. The White House touted stronger-than-expected job data on Friday, after a Labor Department report showed the US economy added far more jobs in March than predicted.
But Trump’s sweeping import tariffs could test the labour market’s resilience in the months ahead amid sagging business confidence.
“To the many investors coming into the United States and investing massive amounts of money, my policies will never change. This is a great time to get rich, richer than ever before!!!” Trump said in a social media post in all caps.
After Beijing’s retaliation, he posted: “China played it wrong, they panicked — the one thing they cannot afford to do!”
Trump on Thursday said he was open to talking to China and making a deal over TikTok by providing relief for US tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for Beijing’s approval of the sale of the ByteDance-owned short video app.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said it was just an example and did not answer a question on whether plans were underway for him to talk to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Divisions and mixed signals
Countries have slammed the tariffs but, with the exception of China, have so far withheld retaliatory measures, offering talks with the United States.
EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic is due to speak with US counterparts after Trump hit the 27-nation bloc with a 20pc tariff.
With European shares also tumbling to the biggest weekly losses in years, the European Union’s trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic will speak to US counterparts after Trump hit the 27-nation bloc with a 20pc tariff.
“We will not shoot from the hip we want to give negotiations every chance to succeed to find a fair deal, to the benefit of both sides,” he said on social media.
The EU is divided on how best to respond to Trump’s tariffs.
Countries that are cautious about retaliating and thereby raising the stakes in the standoff with the US include Ireland, Italy, Poland and the Scandinavian nations.
French President Emmanuel Macron led the charge on Thursday by calling on companies to freeze investment in the US.
However, French Finance Minister Eric Lombard later cautioned against like-for-like countermeasures on the US tariffs, warning this would also rebound on European consumers.
Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2025
