China refuses trade talks with US as new tariffs kick in
China has refused to continue trade negotiations with the US until President Donald Trump stops threatening further tariffs.
Beijing released a white paper to put across its side of the argument on the same day that the latest round of 10% US tariffs on Chinese products worth $200bn came into effect on Monday.
Bilateral talks were scheduled for this week but were cancelled by China after President Trump threatened higher tariffs if Beijing were to retaliate to the latest batch. China decided to impose its own set of tariffs on US imports worth $60bn.
“The door for trade talks is always open but negotiations must be held in an environment of mutual respect,” said the white paper, according to Xinhua News Agency.
"[The US] has brazenly preached unilateralism, protectionism and economic hegemony, making false accusations against many countries and regions, particularly China, intimidating other countries through economic measures such as imposing tariffs, and attempting to impose its own interests on China through extreme pressure," said the paper.
Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said that European markets were not as severely affected by tariffs as originally expected: “It would appear that the fact that the tariffs were set at 10% as opposed to 25% initially has tempered market concerns of a sharp deterioration in relations between Chinese and US officials after China responded fairly modestly with 5-10% tariffs on only $60bn worth of US goods in return.”
Both Asia and Europe are more exposed to global trade than the US, said analyst Jasper Lawler at the London Capital Group: "For markets, the new tariffs might have been acceptable because the economic effects will be felt most over a longer time period. It was the Chinese delegation of trade representatives pulling out of the latest round of talks that has dampened spirits."