BEIJING (Reuters) -China wants to bring commercial ties with the United States back to a state of healthy and sustainable development, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said on Friday, calling on the U.S. to behave in a way that befits its major country status.
China’s trade has strong resilience and momentum, and the country will expand imports as well as exports in its next five-year plan, Wang said at a press conference.
The country’s policy support for exports has “bucked the trend” amid a complex external environment, Wang said.
He characterised the ups and downs in China-U.S. trade relations as having taught both sides that they need each other.
“A forced decoupling and severing of supply chains is impossible, and some trade between the two sides is difficult to replace, at least in the short term,” he said.
“Having weathered many storms, the two sides remain important economic and trade partners to each other,” Wang said, adding that the two countries can manage tensions through “equal dialogue and consultations”.
U.S. President Donald Trump hiked tariffs on Chinese products to over 100% earlier this year, before walking back much of the hefty duties in a trade truce with Beijing reached in May.
China has until August 12 to reach a deal with Washington to avoid Trump’s reinstating additional import curbs imposed during tit-for-tat tariff exchanges in April and May.
The current overall tariff level imposed by the U.S. on China is at a “still high” 53.6%, Wang told the press conference.
“There are no winners in a trade war. China does not want a trade war, but it is not afraid of one,” he reiterated.
“Major countries should act like major countries. They must shoulder their responsibilities,” he said, adding that China would not change its stance in protecting its national interests.
($1 = 7.1811 Chinese yuan renminbi)
(Reporting by Joe Cash and Ethan Wang; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Kim Coghill)
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