China vows to ‘fight to the end’ on President Trump’s tariffs
President Donald Trump threatened China with more tariffs after they put a 34% tariff on U.S. imports.
A Chinese official criticized Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday for referring to its people as “peasants,” as trade tensions escalate between the two countries.
Speaking on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” on Thursday, Vance responded to questions about how tariffs would bring prices down while boosting domestic manufacturing by talking about the national debt.
“To make it a little more crystal clear, we borrow money from Chinese peasants to buy the things those Chinese peasants manufacture,” he said.
When asked about the remarks during a news conference on Tuesday, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the country had made its position on the trade relations clear.
“To hear words that lack knowledge and respect like those uttered by this vice president is both surprising and kind of lamentable,” spokesperson Lin Jian said, according to a translation by the Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the UN.
China poised to face a 104% tariff starting Wednesday
On what Trump called “Liberation Day” on April 2, the president announced that China and dozens of other countries would receive reciprocal tariffs above a 10% baseline, going into effect on Wednesday, April 9.
His administration set the rate for Chinese goods at 34% on top of the already imposed 20%. China retaliated with its own equal tariff against U.S. goods.
On Monday, Trump threatened to raise the U.S.’s tariff rates against Chinese goods by an extra 50% if China didn’t withdraw its retaliatory tariffs by Tuesday.
Trump seemed to think Beijing was interested in a deal but Lin rebuked the escalation on Tuesday, and the White House confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that China’s additional rate will bring the import tax total to 104% starting after midnight Wednesday.
“It’s a typical move of unilateralism, protectionism and economic bullying, which is widely opposed by the international community,” Lin said, according to the translation. “China’s response will continue to the end.”
U.S. stocks have been volatile throughout the beginning of the week, but opened higher Tuesday morning over hopes that the tariff rates could be negotiated.
Contributing: Francesca Chambers, Joey Garrison
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.