BEIJING – China’s strong response to new US tariffs clearly shows that President Donald Trump’s administration is in a completely unknown ocean.
On Friday, China announced it would impose a 34% tariff on all imports from the US, which should be effective on April 10. China has also announced curbs on rare earth exports.
Trump announced a 54% tariff on all Chinese exports to the US on Wednesday. This included an “mutual” tariff of 34%, in addition to the existing 20% duties. Since he returned to the White House on January 20th, Trump has already implemented two rounds of 10% additional missions on all Chinese imports. The new customs duties will come into effect on April 9th.
US stock markets fell sharply on Friday following China’s retaliation. “The market is talking,” Guo Zi-Kung, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in a Facebook post on Saturday.
The Chinese government has also announced its position against tariff “abuse.”
“Using tariffs as a tool for extreme pressure on selfish interests is an example of a textbook of unilateral, protectionism, economic bullying,” it said in a statement on Saturday.
The statement added, “Under the guise of pursuing reciprocity and fairness, the United States is engaged in the zero-sum game, essentially seeking America’s first and American exceptionalism.”
The Chinese government emphasized that “there are no winners in trade wars or tariff wars, and protectionism leads to a dead end.”
He added, “We don’t cause trouble, but we don’t fear trouble. Pressure and threats are not the right way to deal with China. China continues to take decisive steps to protect its sovereignty, security and development interests.”
Hundreds of thousands of people across the United States have participated in national protests against President Trump’s policies, including his so-called “mutual tariffs.”
Trump’s controversial policies, particularly the implementation of tariffs on countries like China, sparked significant protests. On Saturday, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered in numerous cities across the US and Europe to express their opposition to Trump’s actions, including the introduction of what is known as “mutual tariffs.” In the US alone, around 600,000 people have participated in over 1,400 protests in all 50 states, gathering under the flag of “Hands-Off.”
The tariffs imposed by Trump on China have been receiving unfavourable reactions from both analysts and the media.
The New York Times predicts that the US agricultural sector could face potential losses, reaching hundreds of billions of dollars, after it announced a 34% retaliatory tariff on American imports. The US news outlet said these measures from China would hit American farmers violently. China acquired more than $27 billion in US agricultural exports and related products in 2024, according to the US Department of Agriculture. China is the third largest importer of American agricultural products after Mexico and Canada.
Elsewhere, Tania Georgieva Grovcheva, head of the Bulgarian International Dumas newspaper, told the Tehran Times that the US is likely to appear as a key loser in the trade dispute with China, as Beijing is poised to strengthen the market presence in developing countries.
“In my opinion, Donald Trump is always a businessman, not a politician, not a politician. So he always seeks profit when it comes to making money. China has dignity and doesn’t like it when someone decides to change the rules for greed.
China will find new markets in developing countries. This could be a favorable situation for both China and developing countries. The Bulgarian journalist said from Sofia.
Researcher and foreign policy expert Afifeh Abedi has also expressed his opinion on the Tehran Times regarding the US trade war with China.
She said that the tariffs imposed by the US on China retain a more significant substantial and material connection compared to those imposed on other countries. But she said her growth sparked the rise of China to prove that it is a horrifying enemy to the United States.
Experts compared the strength of the former Soviet Union with China. Abedi noted that China not only has the world’s largest military, but its economic and technological advances set it apart.
“The strength of the Soviet Union comes primarily from its hard power, and has exploited the threat of military conflict to gain concessions from the United States. In contrast, China is not only developing its stiff power, but also diversifying its approach by incorporating multiple aspects of soft power,” Abedi said.
She said, “The main distinction lies in China’s incredible accumulation achieved through affordable and accessible technological advances and advances in foreign economic investments, strengthening its role on the world economy as a “world factory” and linked its dependence on the world’s world, leading to the emergence of its existence in China.
China is ranked as the second largest economy in the world, and is projected to surpass the US in 2035 or perhaps sooner. China’s advances in technology, particularly robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), have also raised considerable concern in the United States.