US President Donald Trump on Friday said that his tariff policy was “doing really well” despite China hiking levies on US goods to 125 percent in spiraling disputes between the world’s two biggest economies.
Investors dumped US government bonds, the US dollar tumbled and stocks seesawed after Beijing’s retaliation against Trump deepened concerns about already traumatized global markets.
Trump sent financial markets into a tailspin by announcing sweeping import taxes on dozens of trade partners last week, only to abruptly roll them back to 10 percent on Wednesday for 90 days — while raising levies on goods from China.
Photo: AP
“We are doing really well on our tariff policy,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network after China announced its latest hike.
“Very exciting for America, and the World!!! It is moving along quickly,” he wrote.
The White House later said that Trump remained “optimistic” about a deal with China, and added that 15 other countries have offers “on the table” during his 90-day pause in their tariffs.
However, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that “the president made it very clear, when the United States is punched he will punch back harder.”
The US and Beijing have been trading salvos of increasingly harsh tariffs since last week.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) gave his first major comments on the tensions on Friday, with Chinese state media quoting him as saying his country was “not afraid.”
Xi also said the EU and China should “jointly resist unilateral bullying practices” during talks with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Beijing announced after Xi’s comments that new tariffs of 125 percent on US goods would take effect yesterday — almost matching the 145 percent level imposed on Chinese goods coming into the US.
Trump reiterated on Thursday that he was looking to do a deal with Xi despite the mounting tensions.
“He’s been a friend of mine for a long period of time. I think that we’ll end up working out something that’s very good for both countries,” he told reporters.
However, US officials have made it clear they expect Xi to reach out first.
Meanwhile, yields on crucial US government bonds, which are normally seen as a financial refuge, were up again on Friday, indicating weaker demand as investors take fright.
Wall Street stocks finished higher on Friday, concluding a rollercoaster week on a positive note amid hopes that the market has absorbed the worst headlines about trade conflicts.
However, policymakers at the US Federal Reserve warned of higher inflation and slower growth ahead due to Trump’s tariff policy.
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS