Xi Jinping has announced a plan to counter China’s continuing economic problems and the impact of the US trade war, as reports swirl that it could drop tariffs on some US products, including semiconductors. Friday’s meeting of the politburo was convened to discuss China’s economic situation, which since the pandemic has faced difficulties fuelled by a housing sector crisis, youth unemployment, and Donald Trump’s tariffs on all Chinese exports. A readout of the meeting published by the official state media outlet, Xinhua, said China’s economy had showed a “positive trend”…
Tag: International trade
US and China holding talks on trade war, Trump says after Beijing rebuttal
The US and China held talks on Thursday to help resolve the trade war between the world’s two largest economies, Donald Trump said. “We may reveal it later, but they had meetings this morning, and we’ve been meeting with China,” the US president told reporters at the White House. China had earlier hit back against Trump’s previous claim to be close to a trade deal with Beijing. Trump had buoyed markets by suggesting on Wednesday that the US was “actively” negotiating with Beijing, and pointing to hopes of a deal…
Starmer and Reeves try to ride three horses with US, EU and China trade ties
Riding two horses is hard enough, but diplomats are joking in private that Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are trying to ride three. At the International Monetary Fund summit in Washington this week, Reeves sought to position the UK as a beacon of free trade that is open to business with the EU, US and China. Riding those three horses is central to the government’s strategy for boosting growth and navigating the international stage at a time when old alliances are being upended and the post-cold war order redrawn. What…
UK overtures to China worry Hongkongers | Letter
As a Hongkonger with a British national (overseas) – BNO – passport who is now living in Britain, I read your editorial about the UK’s evolving position on China with both personal and political weight (The Guardian view on UK-China relations: a dilemma made sharper by Brexit, 16 April). For many of us who left Hong Kong following the imposition of the national security law, the threat from the ruling regime was not abstract – it was immediate, personal and existential. Our migration was not simply a search for better…
Boeing investors brace for fallout from Trump tariffs
Investors in Boeing are braced to learn the full impact of Donald Trump’s trade war, amid fears the US planemaker could be hit harder than first expected after jets intended for a Chinese airline returned to the US. A Boeing 737 Max 8 plane intended for use by a Chinese airline returned to the US on Monday from Boeing’s China finishing centre, according to flight data cited by Reuters. It followed the arrival in the US on Sunday of another 737 Max painted in the livery of China’s Xiamen Airlines…
Cutting business ties with China would be ‘foolish’, Reeves says amid reports of US pressure
Rachel Reeves has dismissed the idea of economically disengaging from China, amid concerns the US may put pressure on the UK to limit its deals with Beijing. The chancellor, who will discuss a trade deal with the US on a trip to Washington next week, said it would be “very foolish” for Britain to have less involvement with Xi Jinping’s administration. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that US officials would attempt to use trade deals and tariff discussions to economically isolate China. Keir Starmer spoke to Donald Trump…
Nvidia’s CEO makes surprise visit to Beijing after US restricts chip sales to China
The chief executive of the American chip maker Nvidia visited Beijing on Thursday, days after the US issued fresh restrictions on sales of the only AI chip it was still allowed to sell to China. Jensen Huang’s surprise visit was on the invitation of a trade organisation, according to a social media account affiliated with state media. The official broadcaster China Central Television said Huang met Ren Hongbin, the head of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, where he said he hopes “to continue to cooperate with…
Temu and Shein warn of US price hikes from next week due to Trump tariffs
Two of China’s largest fast fashion retailers, Temu and Shein, have warned US customers that they will face price increases from next week, as Donald Trump’s hefty tariffs on Chinese imports come into force. Both companies will be hit by new import levies, which will mean taxes of up to 145% being applied to Chinese goods. They will also suffer from Trump’s cancellation of the “de minimis” exemption, under which shipments worth less than $800 (£600) could be imported duty-free. That exemption was crucial in helping the low-cost retailers make…
China scraps tariffs on Australian wine
China has dropped tariffs on Australian wine, a long-awaited decision heralded by the Albanese government as validation of its “calm and consistent approach” with the superpower on a series of controversial trade disputes. In a statement on Thursday the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, foreign minister, Penny Wong, and trade minister, Don Farrell, said they had been informed that from Friday, China’s duties on Australian bottled wine would come to an end. Australia would, in turn, discontinue its legal proceedings in the World Trade Organization, the government said. “We welcome this…
The Guardian view on supply chains: not only just in time, but just in case | Editorial
In 2012, shortly before becoming China’s top leader, Xi Jinping visited the Port of Los Angeles to discuss boosting trade. What then looked like a locus of cooperation has now become another site for suspicion as Sino-American relations remain tense. Last month, the Biden administration announced $20bn of funding for port infrastructure, much of it to replace cargo cranes that have almost all been made by a state-owned Chinese firm. The US is concerned because the sophisticated pieces of equipment manage information about containers and their contents, their origins and…