China yesterday warned other countries against making trade deals with the US to Beijing’s detriment.
Governments including those of Taiwan, Japan and South Korea have begun negotiations with Washington after US President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs against almost all of the US’ trading partners on April 2. The import taxes were quickly paused against most countries after markets panicked, but he increased his already steep tariffs against China.
“China firmly opposes any party reaching a deal at the expense of China’s interests,” the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a statement. “If this happens, China will never accept it and will resolutely take countermeasures in a reciprocal manner. China is determined and capable of safeguarding its own rights and interests.”
Photo:AP
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said earlier this month the countries currently negotiating trade deals with the US should “approach China as a group” together with Washington.
The US tariffs against other countries are economic bullying, the Chinese ministry said in the statement attributed to an unnamed spokesperson.
“Appeasement cannot bring peace, and compromise cannot win respect,” it added. “For one’s own temporary selfish interests, sacrificing the interests of others in exchange for so-called exemptions is like seeking the skin from a tiger. It will ultimately only fail on both ends and harm others without benefiting themselves.”
China said it is open to talks with Washington, but no meetings have been announced.
Trump made China the target of his steepest tariffs, imposing several rounds of tariffs totaling 145 percent on Chinese imports. Beijing has retaliated with tariffs of 125 percent on US imports.
In related news, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba yesterday told parliament that Tokyo would not just keep conceding to US demands to reach a deal over tariffs, in some of his most combative remarks since Trump launched a push for more access to Tokyo’s sensitive auto and agricultural sectors as part of his global trade war.
“If Japan concedes everything, we won’t be able to secure our national interest,” Ishiba said.
Tokyo is working to hammer out its strategy for a second round of negotiations before the end of April after its chief negotiator held initial talks with US officials in Washington last week. Details of specific US demands remain vague, but Trump frequently complains about the lack of US cars in Japan.
Senior US officials have also highlighted tariffs on agricultural imports into Japan, including rice, as examples of unfair trade barriers.
The stakes are high for Ishiba. Cars are Japan’s most lucrative export industry and the nation’s farmers are an important support base for his ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which faces a national election in July and is struggling with low public support ratings.
A survey published yesterday in the Asahi Shimbun showed approval for Ishiba’s Cabinet at 30 percent and disapproval at 56 percent.
In his remarks in parliament, Ishiba launched a strong defense of barriers to agricultural imports.
“We have been working to protect Japanese agriculture using various methods, such as tariffs and minimum access rules,” Ishiba said. “We must continue to protect it, and of course, we must also protect consumer safety.”
Despite the robust talk, Japan needs to find bargaining chips as it seeks to win an exemption from an across-the-board US tariff rate of 24 percent that was reduced to 10 percent for 90 days from earlier this month. As with other nations, Japan also faces a 25 percent levy on shipments of cars, steel and aluminum.
Ishiba did not mention specific offers that Japan would make, but he ruled out a scenario in which he would sacrifice farmers by lowering protections for their products as part of any deal to get the 25 percent tariff on autos lifted.
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