The 90-day suspension in the US-China tariff war has been carefully welcomed in China, but tensions remain high, and Xi Jinping has once again accused the US of “bullying.”
After two days of talks between Geneva officials over the weekend, China and the US agreed that the high tariffs each imposed on the other in a fierce trade war would drop significantly for the next 90 days.
Under the contract, the US obligations for Chinese products will be reduced from 145% to 30%, while the US import duties in China will be reduced from 125% to 10%. China has also lifted the ban on airlines delivering Boeing planes, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.
Donald Trump welcomed the talks as a “complete reset” of bilateral relations, but China’s response revealed that Beijing was still angry and even then denounced the US for causing economic disruption.
When meeting Latin American leaders in Beijing on Tuesday, XI said “there are no winners in the tariff war or trade war.”
“Bullying and hegemony only lead to self-valuation,” he added in relation to the US.
On Tuesday afternoon, China’s foreign ministry continued to condemn “irrational” tariffs, urging the US to “stopping and halting responsibility” for the fentanyl crisis on China.
The 10% and 30% imbalance under the agreement is because the US maintains a 20% tariff on accusations that China has turned a blind eye to exporting chemicals used to make fentanyl.
Chinese officials have repeatedly said that Beijing is opposed to all tariffs and does not want to take part in a mutually destructive trade war, but is willing to “fight to the end.”
An English editor, published throughout the title of state media on Tuesday, said the consultation was marked “an important step in resolving the differences.” It said that China’s approach was consistently constructive and welcomed the US “willingness to engage in that process.”
“We are pleased to see the dialogue resumed, but we are also fully prepared for the long-term, complicated and laborious nature of resolving differences between the two countries,” it said.
The tariff war has an unusual impact on Chinese traders and manufacturers, with the suspension halted and an estimated 16 million jobs at risk.
China is now joining dozens of other countries and waiting to see if it can reach an agreement with the US to not resume crushing tariffs. On Monday, ministries of China’s Ministry of Commerce held discussions with foreign trade representatives about navigating for the next three months and weathering the tariff shock.
Bao, an assistant general manager at Ningbo Foreign Trade Company, said 30% of exports went to the US and he was cautiously optimistic about the 90-day suspension.
“It’s hard to say what will happen in 90 days, because I don’t know,” Bao told the Guardian. “We may now see a higher good shipment volume as everyone might want to hurry up with the item (end of the 90 days) ahead.”
Chinese business media outlet Caixin reported that some companies have already shifted their focus from the US to domestic or other Asian markets.
Opinions were divided on Chinese social media, where contract debates have involved more than 500 million.
Hu Xijin, former editor of nationalist Chinese tabloid The Global Times, described the agreement as “a great victory for China in favor of the principles of equality and mutual respect.”
One reader commenting on the paper’s report said, “Permanence is a victory!”
Others were more cynical about “victory.” “Oh, did you win again?” one person said in Wybo. “Stock index responds like we just lose.”
On Chinese Instagram, Xiaohongshu, users likened the pause by “change ventilators for dying patients.” “He can breathe, but he is far from not being able to walk actively,” they wrote.
Other commenters compared the US to the boy who screamed wolves and wanted to “break the promise over and over.” “Economically, this is a kind of ceasefire.”
Additional research by Lillian City.