Alsephina

European Union leaders are planning to travel to Beijing for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in late July, according to five people familiar with the arrangement.

No date has been confirmed with the Chinese side, but EU leaders’ willingness to make the trip indicates a serious effort to re-engage with Beijing at a time when the bloc’s relationship with the United States has effectively collapsed.

Von der Leyen spoke with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday, at the request of China’s No 2 official, while trade chief Maros Sefcovic spoke to Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao on Wednesday.

On a video call, Wang and Sefcovic agreed to “immediately start negotiations on electric vehicle price commitments, as well as discuss China-EU automotive industry investment cooperation”, according to a commerce ministry read-out.

With both sides under severe economic pressure from the US, Brussels has put the brakes on a spiralling relationship with China, which sank to new lows in recent years over Beijing’s ties with Moscow and a list of economic grievances.

This year, von der Leyen – seen as among Europe’s most prominent hawks – has adopted a softer tone when speaking of China.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez arrived on Thursday for his third trip in two years, while French President Emmanuel Macron plans to visit in the second half of this year, according to several official sources.

Archive link

US President Donald Trump's steep tariff hike targeting Chinese goods, which took effect Thursday, brings Washington's additional rate on many products to 145 percent, the White House confirms.

Trump's 90-day halt in fresh duties for dozens of countries has come into place, a White House order showed.

But he has also doubled down by raising new tariffs on Chinese imports to 125 percent, a figure that stacks atop a 20 percent additional duty from earlier in the year over China's alleged role in the fentanyl supply chain.

This takes the total tariffs Trump has imposed on Chinese products this year to 145 percent, stacking on existing levies from past administrations.

Archive link

Hours after Donald Trump imposed record 125% tariffs on Chinese products entering the US, China has announced it will further curb the number of US films allowed to screen in the country.

The move mirrors the potential countermeasure suggested by two influential Chinese bloggers earlier in the week, warning that “China has plenty of tools for retaliation”.

Both Liu Hong, a senior editor at Xinhuanet, the website of the state-run Xinhua news agency, as well as Ren Yi, the grandson of former Guangdong party chief Ren Zhongyi, posted an identical proposal involving a heavy reduction on the import of US movies and further investigation of the intellectual property benefits of American companies operating in China.

China is the world’s second largest film market after the US, although in recent years domestic offerings have outshone Hollywood imports. However, Thursday’s measure comes as a significant blow to western studios, with Bloomberg reporting shares of Walt Disney Co, Paramount Global, and Warner Bros Discovery Inc all suffering an immediate decline.

Last week, the newly released A Minecraft Movie from Warner Bros topped the Chinese box office with ticket sales of $14.5m – around 10% of the global total. In 2024, the highest-grossing US film released in China was Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which took $132m in that territory, towards a global total of $572m.

The first US film was approved for Chinese release 31 years ago, with the number peaking at more than 60 in 2018. Since then it has declined, according to data from the Chinese ticketing service Maoyan Entertainment, thanks to escalating tensions and the increased popularity of homegrown movies.

Animated fantasy film Ne Zha 2, about a child battling monsters from Chinese mythology, was released in late January and has now taken $1.8bn in China, and $20m in the US.

Archive link

Amid an escalating trade war with the United States, China is holding frequent conversations with the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) – its two largest trading partners by bloc – with plans to address bilateral issues and forge stronger ties.

Commerce Minister Wang Wentao held a video call with EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic on Tuesday, during which both sides agreed to immediately begin negotiations on electric vehicle (EV) pricing and discuss investment ties in the auto sector, according to a statement released by China’s Ministry of Commerce on Thursday.

As of Thursday, additional US tariffs imposed this year on imports from China stood at 125 per cent – on top of previous tariffs estimated to average more than 10 per cent.

Before the latest 21 per cent increase in US tariffs, China had already decided to increase its retaliatory tariffs on US goods to 84 per cent from noon on Thursday.

The 27-nation EU also retaliated against the US, imposing tariffs as high as 25 per cent on American products.

China, the world’s second-largest economy, is also enhancing communication with its Southeast Asian trade partners to foster deeper cooperation.

On Wednesday, Wang had a video meeting with Malaysian Trade Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz. Malaysia is the current chair of Asean.

Archive link

Trump in a Truth Social post says he is “immediately” raising U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports to 125% “based on the lack of respect that China has shown to the World’s Markets.”

But Trump in the same post says he has “authorized a 90 day PAUSE” for other countries, pointing to what he says are more than 75 nations who have reached out to negotiate.

That pause, and “a substantially lowered Reciprocal Tariff during this period, of 10%,” are both “effective immediately,” Trump writes.

Archive link

The Chinese government will impose an 84% tariff on all imports from the US starting April 10, the Finance Ministry said in a statement Wednesday. China’s move came hours after the steepest American tariffs in a century went into force, taking Trump’s duties on Beijing this year to 104%.

US equity futures fell more than 2% after China announced the new tariffs, a move that followed the Asian country’s vow to “fight to the end.” Stocks in Europe slumped 4%. Beijing appears to have tweaked its tariff strategy, moving from answering immediately in the first two rounds to responding just as markets open in New York.

Xi hasn’t directly commented on Trump’s tariff hikes, but Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for China’s embassy in the US, on Wednesday shared a video of the top leader saying in 2020 that “intimidation or pressure will never work on the Chinese nation,” comments made on the 70th anniversary of China’s entry into the Korean War.

Chinese officials rushed to reassure the private sector as the trade spat worsened, with Premier Li Qiang telling a meeting of experts and entrepreneurs Wednesday that Beijing would work to expand domestic demand. In addition, he said that the economy was resilient and maintained its upward momentum in the first quarter.

By not matching the full 104% imposed by Trump, Beijing has shown some restraint, according to Josef Gregory Mahoney, a professor of international relations at Shanghai’s East China Normal University.

“China has reinforced its image of not being bullied while also showing to the world that it’s not going to sink the same level of absurdity, above all when it’s unnecessary and likely theater anyway,” he added.

Archive link

The EU has agreed to impose retaliatory tariffs on €21bn (£18bn) of US goods, targeting farm produce and products from Republican states, in Europe’s first act of retaliation against Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The EU plans to introduce 25% tariffs on scores of goods from almonds to yachts, with the first duties being collected from 15 April, while the bulk apply from 15 May and the remainder from 1 December.

In a statement confirming the favourable vote by EU member states, the European Commission said: “The EU considers US tariffs unjustified and damaging, causing economic harm to both sides, as well as the global economy.”

The tariffs include US soya beans, grown abundantly in Louisiana, the home state of the House of Representatives speaker, Mike Johnson.

Ahead of the vote, analysis of the leaked list of customs codes by Politico found that EU duties would hit up to $13.5bn (£10.6bn) worth of exports from red states, including beef from Kansas and Nebraska, cigarettes from Florida and wood products from North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama.

The EU is facing calls to target US tech firms or banks in future retaliation, a potent but politically explosive target, as the US runs a €109bn (£94bn) trade surplus with the EU in service industries.

The outlook for negotiations is uncertain, amid questions over whether Trump’s goal is to create leverage over other countries – suggesting tariffs could be rolled back – or to raise revenues and reindustrialise the US, which points to their longevity.

Archive link

Sánchez is due to meet with President Xi Jinping on Friday during his third China trip in two years. He’ll be the first European Union leader in Beijing since President Donald Trump launched his barrage of tariffs on leading trading partners, notably China and the EU.

Sánchez says that what Trump is doing to global trade must push Europe to find alternative partners and new markets. That means changing its position toward China, but also Beijing revisiting its stance toward Europe.

Spain has tangible benefits from Chinese investments, in electric vehicles, batteries and solar power.

Elsewhere, much of Europe is warier of Beijing, joining US-led tech curbs and sharing concerns over threats against Taiwan. Worried at a flood of imports, the EU imposed tariffs on Chinese EVs last year.

Most pointedly, China’s alignment with Russia despite its invasion of Ukraine is beyond the pale for many capitals. Madrid, a defense spending laggard, is about as far from the war as you can get on the European mainland.

Sánchez may have broken ranks with the EU as a whole, but Xi is bound to roll out the red carpet regardless.

As Trump continues to upend the world, Spain’s leader surely won’t be the last to make the trip to Beijing.

Archive link

China pledged decisive action to defend its economy, a day after unveiling levies on American goods and export controls on rare earths in response to Donald Trump’s tariffs.

Beijing will continue to take “resolute measures” to safeguard its sovereignty, security and other interests, the state-owned Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday.

On Friday, President Xi Jinping’s government announced it will impose a 34% tariff on all imports from the US starting April 10, matching the level of Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs on Chinese products. Authorities in Beijing announced several other measures, including immediately restricting exports of seven types of rare earths.

China’s measures followed Trump’s move to boost tariffs on global trade partners by introducing the steepest American duties in a century, dealing a blow to global markets. The US tariffs announced this week will raise levies on nearly all Chinese products to at least 54%, potentially crippling the country’s exports to the US.

Global equities extended their slump on Friday, with shares of companies including DuPont de Nemours Inc. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. suffering some of the steepest declines. Stock markets in China and Hong Kong were closed on Friday for a holiday.

Despite the market turmoil, neither country is showing signs of backing down. On Saturday, the US president posted on his Truth Social site that China “has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close.”

Archive link

Fears of global recession rise as stock markets continue to fall after China responds to US president’s ‘bullying tactics’

Stock markets around the world plunged for a second day on Friday as China announced retaliatory tariffs of 34% on US imports, signalling a major escalation of a trade war ignited by Donald Trump and feeding fears of a global recession.

“For all imported goods originating from the US, an additional tariff of 34% on top of the current applicable tariff rate will be imposed,” Beijing’s finance ministry said.

China’s commerce ministry said that it would also impose more restrictions on the export of rare earths which are used in high-tech manufacturing such as batteries and electric vehicles. It added a further 16 US companies and organisations to its export control list, meaning that Chinese companies are restricted from doing business with them.

China had previously promised “resolute countermeasures” against Trump’s tariffs, which slapped a 10% rate on all imports coming to the US, with extra levies for certain countries, including China.

Wang Wen, the dean of Renmin University of China’s Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, said: “China will never give in to Trump, but it does not exclude co-operation with the United States at the level of mutual respect and win-win co-operation. China knows that co-operation is not sought, but fought for.” Wang said that China’s response was “restrained” and limited to trade measures.

However other analysts said that China’s response was forceful.

Stephane Ekolo, a market and equity strategist for Tradition in London, told Reuters: “China comes out swinging with an aggressive response to Trump’s tariffs. This is significant and is unlikely to be over, hence the negative market reactions. Investors are afraid of a ‘tit for tat’ trade war situation.”

Around 60% of duty-free packages coming into the US come from China. But those deliveries will, from May, be subject to a fee of 30% of the value of the goods, or $25, rising to $50 in June.

China has also filed a lawsuit against the US with the World Trade Organisation.

Archive link

Diplomats from Iran, Russia and China are meeting in Beijing for talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme that could lead to negotiations following years of delay.

The meeting was attended by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, who “exchanged views on the Iran nuclear issue and other issues of common concern,” according to Chinese media.

Donald Trump, a year into his first term as United States president in 2018, withdrew from a landmark pact Iran reached in 2015 with the US, Russia, China, Britain, France, Germany and the European Union, in which Tehran agreed to curb its nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.

Tehran continued to abide by the terms of the deal – which was considered a milestone for the administration of then-US President Barack Obama – but began slowly rolling back its commitments after Trump ended the deal.

The meeting in Beijing between the three diplomats follows a series of overtures from Trump since his return to the White House in January to resume nuclear talks with Tehran.

The US president this week sent a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei calling for new talks but also warning that the US was within its rights to take military action against the country’s nuclear programme.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian responded that he would not negotiate with the US while being “threatened”, and Iran would not bow to US “orders” to talk.

Ayatollah Khamenei maintains Tehran does not have or want nuclear weapons, but a recent report from the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was close to the requirements for a nuclear bomb.

Archive link