China accuses US of unilateralism, protectionism and economic bullying with tariffs

BANGKOK (AP) — China on Monday accused the U.S. of unilateralism, protectionism and economic bullying with tariffs, while calling on representatives of American companies, including Tesla, to “take concrete actions” to resolve the issue.

Putting “America First” over international rules harms the stability of global production and the supply chain and seriously impacts the world's economic recovery, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters.

Last week, Trump put an additional 34% tariff on Chinese goods as part of “Liberation Day,” on top of two rounds of 10% tariffs already declared in February and March, which Trump said were due to Beijing’s role in the fentanyl crisis. China and other governments retaliated quickly. China announced its own 34% tariff rate on U.S. goods, mirroring Trump's tariff rate for China.

On Monday, Beijing struck a note of confidence even as markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai tumbled. The People’s Daily, the Communist Party’s official mouthpiece, had strong words. “The sky won’t fall,” it declared, even if the U.S. tariffs have an impact.

“Faced with the indiscriminate punches of U.S. taxes, we know what we are doing and we have tools at our disposal," it added.

Beijing had announced a slew of countermeasures Friday evening aimed at Trump’s tariffs. As part of these measures, China suspended sorghum, poultry and bonemeal imports from some American companies, and put more export controls on rare earth minerals, critical for various technologies, while launching a lawsuit at the World Trade Organization.

It is unknown if China's leader, Xi Jinping, will meet with Trump to make a deal on the tariffs. Lin directed questions about a possible meeting to other departments.

“Pressure and threats are not the way to deal with China. China will firmly safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” Lin added.

Still, over the weekend, Chinese government officials met a slew of American business representatives including for Tesla, GE Healthcare and others.

“The root of the tariff problem is in the U.S.,” said Ling Ji, a vice minister of Commerce, at the meeting with the 20 American companies, according to a readout of the meeting. "We hope the American companies can address the problem at its root, ... issue reasonable statements, take concrete actions, and work together to safeguard the stability of the global supply chain.

Ling also promised that China will remain open to foreign investment and that it was safe to invest.

In Hong Kong, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said the current market volatility does not warrant any drastic measures, and vowed that the city would remain a free port.

After the city’s stock market slumped 13.2% on Monday, Chan told reporters was functioning in an orderly fashion with substantial selling and buying interests. But the U.S. tariffs would inevitably cause market fluctuations, while retaliatory measures and interest rate policy from other countries would trigger more volatile capital flows.

He blasted the U.S. latest tariffs as “bullying and unreasonable,” saying they have disrupted global supply chains and severely impacted the global economic recovery.

Hong Kong, a former British colony which returned to China in 1997, enjoys semi-autonomy that allows its policies and economic system to be different from mainland China’s.

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AP researcher Yu Bing from Beijing and writer Kanis Leung from Hong Kong contributed to this report.

This article was corrected to reflect Lin Jian's title as spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, not Foreign Affairs spokesperson.