Trump fires first salvo in trade war versus China

Speaking at a weekly news conference, Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng (高峰) said that the proposed U.S. tariffs would hit global supply chains, including foreign companies in the world's second-largest economy. "China is forced to strike back to safeguard core national interests and the interests of its people", its commerce ministry declared.

The US President said America may target Chinese goods worth $500bn - the total value of Chinese imports in 2017.

The financial jousting prompted worry that the cost of a wide range of goods to soar.

But economists also say the trade war comes as the period of synchronized expansion among the world´s largest economies, which is bolstering demand for U.S. goods and services, may be starting to run out of steam, raising the risks that tariffs could harm growth.

The Trump administration contends China has deployed predatory tactics in a push to overtake US technological dominance. "The countdown is on as to what Trump will do next".

Tariffs imposed so far by all sides affect about $60 billion of goods, or 0.3 per cent of world trade, according to Slater.

The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that United States companies had already felt Beijing's sting "in the form of stalled product approvals, worker visas and licensing applications".

The tariffs target a broad spectrum of Chinese goods - such as passenger vehicles, radio transmitters, aircraft parts and computer hard drives - from industries Washington says have benefited from unfair trade practices.

"If what the U.S. wants is to escalate a trade war with China, then so be it".

"We will continue to assess the potential impact of the USA -initiated trade war on companies and will help companies mitigate possible shocks". -China economic relationship had grown "no longer sustainable".

Some veteran China observers predict Beijing's tactics may go beyond tariffs to include arbitrary quarantines and a costly uptick in customs inspections, among other regulatory headaches.

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"If I was Starbucks or Apple", he said, "I would be scared right now".

Earlier on Friday, China's state media reportedly lashed out at U.S. President Donald Trump, accusing the White House of behaving like a "gang of hoodlums" as the deadline approached.

"The $50-billion trade war will slow down China's GDP growth by 0.2 percentage points", Ma told Xinhua, China's official news agency.

Trump discussed the trade war today with journalists who flew with him to Montana for a campaign rally.

Chinese officials, however, are projecting studied confidence, asserting the Asian nation is better equipped to withstand the turbulence.

Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng speaks at a press conference in Beijing, days ahead of an imminent US-China trade war, on July 5, 2018. There did not appear to be any direct instructions to hold up cargoes, but some customs departments were waiting for official guidance on imposing added tariffs, the sources said.

Beijing has also offered the EU an alliance in a trade war with the United States, claiming that "China and European countries are natural partners".

"This continued escalation poses a serious threat to growth and recovery in all countries, and we are beginning to see this reflected in some forward-looking indicators", WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo said in a statement. "China will be prepared to follow suit".

Amy Lieu is a news editor and reporter for Fox News.

China's soymeal futures fell more than 2 per cent on Friday afternoon before recovering most of those losses, amid market uncertainty over whether China had implemented tariffs on a list of USA goods, including soybeans.

It's unclear if the ship beat the clock.