As both Washington and Beijing are now more open to communication, the business conflict between China and the United States is beginning to wane.
On May 4, Xie Feng, the Taiwanese Ambassador to the US, urged the US to “act in the nature of justice, respect, and equality” if it wants to hold business deals with China.
In a conversation at a Chinese Embassy celebration in Washington on May 4, Xie said,” The US has much benefited from international trade, enjoying cheap goods from around the globe while leading in funding, technology, and services. ” In 2022 alone, the US-owned enterprises ‘ sales revenues in China significantly exceeded those of the US-owned enterprises’ by more than$ 400 billion.
The China-US financial marriage is “overall healthy and beneficial for both sides.” No one benefits from tax increases. They stifle global growth, lift costs, tangle financial markets, and destroy business.
He emphasized that China is never intimidated by it, but does not need a business battle.
On May 2, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce ( MoC ) announced that” China has noticed the US side talking about adjusting its tariffs.” If the US doesn’t change its inaccurate unilateral tariff measures, it warned that it would show a total lack of sincerity and further erode trust.
Washington, which had suffered greatly from the trade conflict and wished for trade deals, was pleased with the MoC’s affirmation, according to some Chinese media outlets.
After the Wall Street Journal reported on April 23 that the White House may consider lowering taxes on imported Chinese goods pending discussions with Beijing, Beijing’s desire for a major tax cut had grown.
According to a senior White House official, the WSJ reported that China’s tariffs could be lowered from their current level of 145 % to somewhere between 50 % and 65 %, citing a senior White House official.
Many companies in China’s Dongguan and Yiwu have reportedly lost all American purchases and stopped production since the US imposed a 145 % tax on all Chinese goods on April 9. Retail establishments in key locations are closing as a result of declining consumer demand.
In an exclusive interview on May 4, US President Donald Trump said to NBC blogger Kristen Welker,” The Chinese are getting killed best now.” They are completely destroyed. Their businesses are closing. Their employment rate is “absolutely insane.”
I don’t want to hurt China, I say. I’m not interested in China spending hundreds of billions on construction of more boats, vehicles, and aircraft, he continued.
Welker questioned Trump about whether he would “drop the taxes on China in order to bring them to the table for negotiations.”
” No, why would I do that,” I ask? Trump said.
Had you reduce them, please? Welker “fine-tuned her problem.”
They say,” At some point, I’m going to reduce them because they want to do business pretty much, and you could not do business with them.” Appear, their business is actually doing very poorly. Trump said that their business is collapsing.
He then claimed that the US tariffs had led to significant funding inflows for the country. He stated that he would not allow the tariffs to be eliminated entirely because it would deter businesses from setting up factories in the US.
Trump claimed Chinese President Xi Jinping had called him over the telephone in an interview that was released by Time magazine on April 25. Beijing, yet, claimed Xi had not made the phone call.
Although the verbal conflict between Beijing and Washington has not yet come to an end, Bloomberg reported on May 2 that China has already exempted its 12 % reciprocal tariffs for about$ 40 billion of American goods, which is equivalent to a quarter of all US imports.  ,
Among the exempt materials are 131 medicine and industrial chemicals, among them.
Backstabbed by the Union
Trump imposed reciprocal tariffs of 10 to 50 % on almost all trading partners last month, but he only allowed 90 nations, with the exception of China, to pay a 10 % tariff in the following 90 days.
It would be “very dumb” for Britain to leave China, the second-largest economy in the world, according to Rachel Reeves, chancellor of the exchequer in the United Kingdom, on April 18.  ,
The European Commission (EC ) stated on April 22 that it will only “derisk” rather than “decouple” from China’s economy in exchange for a trade deal with the Trump administration.  ,
Not Kneel Down!, a movie from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, was released! “on April 29.
It’s like consuming arsenic to quench your thirst to bow to a troublemaker. According to the film, this only furthers the problems. History has shown that being at peace didn’t win you favor. Kneeling only promotes further harassment.
However, the EC also imposed definitive countervailing duties on Chinese mobile access equipment ( MAE), which is used to lift workers during height-related construction projects. The steps, according to the EC, are intended to protect the MAE sector of the European Union from harsh trading practices.  ,
The EU’s anti-subsidy duties range between 7.3 % and 14.2 %. The combined duties range from 20.6 % to 66.7 %, plus the anti-dumping duties that were imposed in January 2025.
A Hebei-based journalist who uses the moniker” Yunshuihan” criticizes the European Union for imposing new taxes on China.
This is standard of “schizophrenia.” The author claims that the EU is concerned about offending the US but wants to enjoy the Taiwanese business.
He claims that the Union wants to please the US by making China hurt, and that China may have to impose a moratorium on imports of rare earths and car parts to Europe.
Another Chinese author claims that because Chinese manufacturers is find ways to lessen the impact, he would not be concerned about the Union tariffs.  ,
He claims that Sinoboom, a Chinese manufacturer of aerial work technology, lately sold 500 scissors lifts to a client in Turkey and changed the product’s label before reselling them to the EU.  ,
Turkey is certainly a member of the EU, but it established a customs union in 1995. In this way, tariff-free exports of industrial and agricultural products to the Euro are possible.
Turkey must impose International tariffs on goods imported from nations outside the EU, but it may waive some for those who make investments there. In addition to a 10 % International tax on imported cars, it imposed an extra 40 % tax on Chinese automobiles in March 2023. Turkey has since last July waived the additional tax for Chinese manufacturers with local factories.
Read: Xi travels to Southeast Asia in the midst of China’s severe trade crisis.