Donald Trump Descend d’Air Force One à Palm Beach, en Floride, the 13 Avril 2025 (AFP / Mandel Ngan)
Donald Trump warned on Sunday that no country was “shot” against his customs offensive, “especially not China” that he again attacked exemptions on high-tech products announced by the United States.
“No one is drawn (…), especially not China which, by far, treats us the most,” thundered the republican president on his social network Truth.
Donald Trump’s warning intervenes the day after an exemption from surcharges – up to 145% for China – granted by American authorities on high -tech products, smartphones and computers in mind, as well as on semiconductors.
The US leader, however, said on Sunday that he would announce “in the week” new surcharge on semiconductors entering the United States, which “will be in place in the not too far future”.
What about smartphones and other electronic devices? “It will be announced very soon, we will discuss it, but we will also talk to businesses. You know, we must show a certain flexibility” for “certain products”, added the manager without saying more, facing journalists aboard the Air Force One plane.
United States: the main goods imported from China (AFP / Jonathan Walter)
Earlier in the day, his Minister of Commerce Howard Lutnick had mentioned specific sectoral customs duties to come on semiconductors, “probably in a month or two”, as well as on pharmaceutical products.
“We cannot rest on China for fundamental things we need. Our drugs and semiconductors must be produced in America,” said Lutnick during an ABC channel interview.
– “Correct errors” –
American announcements opposite what China demands, when the trade war launched by the United States flocked the financial markets, with actions playing the roller coasters, gold prices at the highest and the American debt market.
Chinese presidents Xi Jinping and American Donald Trump (Pool / Andres Martinez Casares)
If the Chinese Ministry of Commerce has recognized the “small step” made by Washington with its softened position on high-tech products, “we urge the United States to (…) take a big step to correct its mistakes, completely cancel the poor practice of reciprocal customs duties and return to the right of mutual respect,” said a spokesperson on a statement on Sunday.
-Protectionism “does not lead anywhere”, repeated Chinese President Xi Jinping, in words reported on Monday by the official China New Agency.
“Our two countries must firmly preserve the multilateral trading system, the stability of industrial and global supply chains as well as an international opening and cooperation environment,” said the manager, who began a visit to Vietnam on Monday.
A woman passes in front of an electronics store in a shopping center in Beijing on April 13, 2025 (AFP / Pedro Pardo)
At the 145% of cumulative surcharge imposed by Donald Trump on Chinese products since his return to the White House, excluding exemptions, Beijing has retaliated by making its customs duties jump 125% since Saturday.
While continuing to associate China in the week, the New York billionaire had seemed to give some respite to the other trade partners of the United States, by relieving them on Wednesday for 90 days of his customs taxes announced shortly before and by adding only 10% customs duties.
– Asian tour –
In a first criticism of the customs offensive of Donald Trump the day before, Beijing posed as a defender of poor countries by making public an appeal with the Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, during which China had warned against “the serious damages” that these surcharges inflicted on the developed countries, “in particular” them”.
In the port of Yantai, in eastern China, April 3, 2025 (AFP / STR)
They “could even trigger a humanitarian crisis,” said Chinese trade minister Wang Wentao.
Despite these very strong trade tensions between the first two world economic powers, Donald Trump said “optimistic” on Friday on a trade agreement with Beijing.
The United States absorbed 16.4% of the total Chinese exports, for a total exchange of $ 500 billion, according to Beijing data, largely in deficit for the United States.
It is in this ultra-conflict context that Chinese President Xi Jinping begins on Monday a tour in Southeast Asia. After Vietnam, he will go to Malaysia and Cambodia, to strengthen the trade relations of his country and make him appear as a trusted partner.
The South-East Asia square is central for Chinese exports: in 2024, the countries of the regional block, Asean, Vietnam and Malaysia in mind, were their first recipients with $ 586.5 billion in total, according to Chinese customs data.
