Serious negotiations are underway to end the tariff war

China’s response came in response to the American attempt made by the Trump administration in recent weeks to renegotiate trade relations. Although Donald Trump has stated that negotiations with Beijing are already underway, the Chinese government has consistently denied this. However, Chinese state media has reported for the first time that the US side has contacted China through multiple channels – this could be the first sign of Beijing’s willingness to negotiate.

They would negotiate – but not at any price

A statement from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce on Friday confirmed:

“China’s position is clear: we do not want to fight, but we are not afraid of it either. If we have to fight, we will persevere to the end; if we have to negotiate, our door is open.”

At the same time, they added that a prerequisite for constructive dialogue is that Washington withdraws the unilaterally imposed punitive tariffs. Beijing is currently examining the American requests, but has not yet decided on a specific date for negotiations.

Tariff war reloaded

Donald Trump already pursued a hard-line trade policy against China during his first term in office, but in the spring of 2025 he opened new fronts: on April 2, he announced new tariffs against practically every country in the world. Following the announcement, stock markets crashed, so Trump was forced to back down within a short time and suspended the measures for most countries for 90 days.

However, China remained an exception. The two countries mutually raised tariffs: on the US side, this meant a 145% tariff rate on certain Chinese products, while Beijing responded with 125% countermeasures. The tariff war is already having its effects: the US economy suffered a 0.3 percent decline in the first quarter of this year.