China commerce ministry says Beijing will fight back if U.S. escalates trade spat

BEIJING (Reuters) – China is well prepared and will not hesitate to fight back if the United States escalates its trade spat with Beijing, the commerce ministry said on Thursday, adding Chinese President Xi Jinping’s pledge to cut import tariffs is not a concession.

Xi on Tuesday vowed to open the country’s economy further and lower import tariffs on products like cars. U.S. President Donald Trump responded in a tweet saying he was “thankful” for Xi’s kind words on tariffs and access for U.S. automakers, as well as his “enlightenment” on the issue of intellectual property.

It would be misleading to say Xi’s pledge at the Boao Forum this week – Asia’ version of Davos – was a concession to the United States, commerce ministry spokesman Gao Feng said at a regular press briefing in Beijing.

Xi was merely outlining China’s strategy to open up further, which had nothing to do with its trade friction with the United States, Gao said.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.