China calls meeting over escalating trade war with US

Amid rising trade tensions with the United States, China’s top leadership is set to meet on Wednesday to discuss measures to stimulate the economy and support stability in financial markets. Reuters reports.

Economists predict that the fallout from the trade war could significantly slow growth in the world’s second-largest economy by one to two percentage points this year, as well as lead to increased overcapacity, job losses and increased deflation.

Senior officials from several government and regulatory agencies, including the central bank, the People’s Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance, are expected to attend the meeting. Officials from the Ministry of Commerce, the banking regulator National Financial Regulatory Administration and the securities regulator China Securities Regulatory Commission are also likely to attend.

Politicians will discuss measures to boost domestic consumption and support capital markets in China, the sources said.

According to Reuters, for China, the escalation of the trade war comes against the backdrop of a prolonged crisis in the real estate market and significant local government debt, which negatively affects business and consumer confidence.

Although Beijing last week introduced corresponding tariffs against the United States, demonstrating its readiness to resist pressure, analysts believe that Trump’s tariff policy towards China and countries that trade with it puts the Chinese authorities in a difficult position.

US tariffs against China at 104%

On April 2, Trump imposed a basic tariff of 10% on all imports from all countries to the United States by his decree, as well as additional tariffs for about 60 countries, including China.

For China, this meant an additional tariff of 34%, which together with the previous ones amounted to 54%. In response, Beijing announced the introduction of an additional tariff of 34% on all American goods.

The United States subsequently imposed an additional 50% tariff on Chinese imports, bringing the total tariff rate to 104%, effective April 9. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian responded to Trump’s 104% import tariffs by saying that China was not seeking conflict.

Tags: China, USA