China targets $3 billion in U.S. exports
Stocks sink again on fears that trade dispute will grow
BEIJING — China announced a $3 billion list of U.S. goods for possible retaliation in a tariff dispute with President Donald Trump and girded Friday for a bigger battle over technology policy as financial markets sank on fears of global disruption.
The Commerce Ministry said higher duties on pork, apples, steel pipe and other goods would offset Chinese losses due to Trump’s tariff hike on steel and aluminum imports. It urged Washington to negotiate a settlement but set no deadline.
Stocks around the world plunged Friday as investors feared that a trade conflict between the countries, which have the biggest economies in the world, would escalate. A second day of big losses pushed U.S. stocks to their worst week in two years.
Trump said Friday he was not concerned that the tariffs would be a drag on the stock market. He added: “China is going to end up treating us fairly.”
In a separate and potentially bigger dispute, the ministry criticized Trump’s decision Thursday to approve a possible tariff hike on Chinese imports worth up to $60 billion over Beijing’s technology policy. It gave no indication of a possible response but a foreign ministry spokeswoman said Beijing was “fully prepared to defend” its interests.
“We don’t want a trade war, but we are not afraid of it,” said the spokeswoman, Hua Chunying.
“Beijing is extending an olive branch and urging the U.S. to resolve trade disputes through dialogue rather than tariffs,” said economist Vishnu Varathan of Mizuho Bank in a report. “Nevertheless, the first volley of shots and retaliatory response has been set off.”
The list announced Friday was linked to Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs, but companies already were looking ahead to a battle over complaints Beijing steals or forces companies to hand over technology.
The tensions reflect the dueling nationalistic ambitions of Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.
U.S. efforts to boost exports of technologybased goods, begun under Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, conflict with China’s plan for state-led development of global competitors in fields from robotics to electric cars. Foreign business groups complain Chinese regulators are trying to squeeze them out of promising industries.
The Commerce Ministry announcement Friday made no mention of jetliners, soybeans or other products that are the biggest U.S. exports to China by value. That leaves Beijing room to take more drastic steps.