China warns any country doing US trade deals: We will make you pay

Source: Daily Mail

Date: April 22, 2025

---

China has warned it will retaliate against any country negotiating more favourable trade deals with the United States 'at the expense' of its own interests.

The commerce ministry announced yesterday that Beijing would employ what it called 'reciprocal' countermeasures should 'any party' comply with demands to freeze it out of international trade.

Responding to a report that Donald Trump was aiming to use upcoming trade talks with dozens of countries to isolate China, the ministry reiterated calls for a united international front against what it continues to term 'unilateral bullying'.

While Trump has called on Beijing to open talks to avoid a trade war, the WSJ reported last week that Washington was already eyeing the opportunity to suffocate China through talks with other affected parties in the coming weeks.

The outlet cited insiders who said Trump would seek to weaken China's leverage at the negotiating table by having other trade partners agree to obstruct its trade and logistics.

China had until now been careful to present its bid for unity as common 'resistance' against a much larger, coercive power. 

But the latest warning marks a shift in tone, with Beijing telling partners it will not accept compliance with Washington's efforts to harm its globalised economy.

While Trump has offered most parties subject to his radical tariff plan a 90 day window to negotiate individual deals, Chinese goods are still subject to 145% levies. 

Beijing responded with 125% tariffs on U.S. goods on April 12, in line with the American levies, excluding a 20% legacy duty that the White House said was already in place. 

The burgeoning trade war centred on China and the United States threatens to force third parties to choose sides or face strict tariffs, hitting businesses and consumers.

While the United States has already called on Beijing to negotiate a deal and avert a deepening conflict, insiders claim officials hope that individual talks with present an opportunity to first hurt China's bargaining power before meeting to discuss terms.

Citing 'people with knowledge of the conversations', the WSJ reported that U.S. officials planned to use talks with more than 70 countries to disallow China from shipping goods through their countries; prevent Chinese firms from locating in their territories to avoid U.S. tariffs; and not absorb China's cheap industrial goods into their economies.

The WSJ said this was aimed at 'forcing Beijing to the negotiating table with less leverage' ahead of Trump's talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

China shows little sign of backing down from a trade war, though did say with the 125% hike on tariffs that it would not respond to any more tariffs brought against it by the U.S.

Officials had until now maintained a consistent line that trade partners should help it resist coercion from the United States. 

Meeting with Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez earlier this month, Xi Jinping had echoed calls by his finance ministry to resist 'unilateral bullying'.

'China and Europe should fulfil their international responsibilities... and jointly resist unilateral bullying practices,' he said.

This, he stressed, would not only 'safeguard their own legitimate rights and interests, but also... safeguard international fairness and justice.'

In a show of apparent goodwill, Xi added that the 90-day reprieve on hefty tariffs against 57 countries followed 'pressure from China'.

But the latest warning presents as a more direct threat to partners dependent on cheap Chinese manufacturing that siding with the U.S. will be seen as an affront.

This may force parties to choose sides, with Donald Trump threatening what China has acknowledged to be 'abnormally high tariffs' against his trade partners.

While Britain and the EU are among dozens now facing a baseline 10% rate pending negotiations, leaders are still said to be contemplating their own countermeasures should talks break down - leaving the new global alignment still in the air.

While the tariffs have created wide uncertainty and unsettled international markets, Asia has seen relatively limited losses in recent days, sparking talk talk that funds could be reallocating money to equities in the area, in spite of the new levies.

President Donald Trump's increasingly vocal attacks on Fed Chair Jerome Powell for not cutting interest rates saw all three main Wall Street indexes shed around 2.4% on Monday and the dollar hit three-year lows as panicked Wall St investors once again dumped US assets.

'The "sell America" trade was in full flight,' said Tapas Strickland, head of market economics at NAB. 

'Whether or not President Trump is legally able and willing to move against the Fed, the jousting underscores the loss of U.S. exceptionalism and the very real policy risk for investors.'

The selling did abate somewhat in Asia, allowing S&P 500 futures to bounce 0.3% and Nasdaq futures 0.4%.

The market faces another test from earnings this week, with 27% of the S&P 500 due to report. 

Tesla is due later in the session, having already shed almost 6% on Monday amid reports of production delays.

Illustrating the wider turmoil, gold climbed to $3,500 for the first time as investors sought safer assets.