Bloomberg reports that China signaled possible trade talks with the U.S. following Trump’s recent tariff hikes, saying it’s evaluating outreach from Washington. While Beijing urged the U.S. to show “sincerity” by easing tariffs, markets rallied on hopes of de-escalation. Economic strain on both sides, including slowing Chinese factory activity and a U.S. import surge, is adding pressure to negotiate. However, uncertainty remains, especially after Trump appointed Marco Rubio—a China critic—as interim national security adviser. They write:
China said it is assessing the possibility of trade talks with the US, the first sign since Donald Trump hiked tariffs last month that negotiations could begin between the two sides.
China’s Commerce Ministry said in a Friday statement that it had noted senior US officials repeatedly expressing their willingness to talk to Beijing about tariffs, and urged officials in Washington to show “sincerity” toward China. […]
The statement signaled the stalemate between the world’s two largest economies could shift, after Trump hiked US tariffs to the highest level in a century and Beijing retaliated in kind. […]
“If we fight, we will fight to the end; if we talk, the door is open,” it said. “What China wants to emphasize is that in any possible dialogue or talks, if the United States does not correct its wrong unilateral tariff measures, it means that the United States has no sincerity at all and will further damage the mutual trust between the two sides.”
Read more here.
