Rhetorics from Chinese officials regarding trade war with US continued to be hard-line. The ruling Communist Party is clearly preparing their citizens for the “new long march” in prolonged trade war.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Hanhui said today “we oppose a trade war but are not afraid of a trade war.” He went further to accuse the US that “this kind of deliberately provoking trade disputes is naked economic terrorism, economic homicide, economic bullying.”
He added: “This trade clash will have a serious negative effect on global economic development and recovery… We will definitely properly deal with all external challenges, do our own thing well, develop our economy… At the same time, we have the confidence, resolve and ability to safeguard our country’s sovereignty, security, respect and security and development interests.”
Yesterday, stock markets were rocked by news that China is going to weaponize its rare earths in the trade war. The state-run China Daily newspaper said today “it would be naive to think that China does not have other countermeasures apart from rare earths to hand”. “As Chinese officials have reiterated, they have a ‘tool box’ large enough to fix any problem that may arise as trade tensions escalate, and they are ready to fight back ‘at any cost’.”
