China has urged the United States to refrain from using tariffs as a threat and called for a dialogue to resolve trade issues. This comes after US President Donald Trump announced an additional 100% tariff on China, as well as export controls on “any and all critical software” from November 1.
‘We don’t want a tariff war but…’
The Commerce Ministry stated in response to a reporter’s question regarding Trump’s new 100% tariffs and export controls on all critical software.
“China’s stance is consistent,” the Commerce Ministry said in a statement. It added, “We do not want a tariff war, but we are not afraid of one.”
The Commerce Ministry added, “China urges the US to correct its erroneous practices as soon as possible, to build on the important consensus reached during the call between the two presidents, to safeguard the hard-earned outcomes of the consultations, to continue leveraging the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism, and to resolve respective concerns through dialogue on the basis of mutual respect and equal consultation, to properly manage differences, and to maintain the stable, healthy, and sustainable development of China-US economic and trade relations. If the US insists on its own way, China will resolutely take corresponding measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.”
The Commerce Ministry added that in just 20 days, since their talks in September, Trump has introduced a series of restrictive measures against China. It added, “These measures include adding multiple Chinese entities to the export control entity list and the Specially Designated Nationals list; arbitrarily expanding the scope of regulated companies through penetrating rules, affecting thousands of Chinese companies; and ignoring China’s concerns and goodwill by insisting on implementing Section 301 measures on China’s maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding industries.”
The Ministry noted that these measures have “severely harmed” China’s interests, adding that it “firmly opposes them”.
‘Over and above any tariff’: Trump’s 100% tariffs on China
Trump, as usual, announced on Truth Social that the United States would impose an additional 100% tariff on China, adding to all existing tariffs.
“Starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying. Also on November 1st, we will impose Export Controls on any and all critical software,” he wrote on the platform.
“It has just been learned that China has taken an extraordinarily aggressive position on Trade in sending an extremely hostile letter to the World, stating that they were going to, effective November 1st, 2025, impose large-scale Export Controls on virtually every product they make, and some not even made by them. This affects ALL Countries, without exception, and was obviously a plan devised by them years ago. It is absolutely unheard of in International Trade, and a moral disgrace in dealing with other Nations.
The announcement comes after Trump stated that he learnt that China has taken an “aggressive position on trade”.
“[China] sent an extremely hostile letter to the World, stating that they were going to, effective November 1st, 2025, impose large-scale Export Controls on virtually every product they make, and some not even made by them,” he said, before noting, “This affects all countries, without exception, and was obviously a plan devised by them years ago. It is absolutely unheard of in International Trade, and a moral disgrace in dealing with other nations.”
China’s counter to Trump’s ‘aggressive position on trade’ claim
China responded to this and said that it is a “normal step” on its part to improve the export control system in accordance with laws and regulations.
“As a responsible major country, China has always firmly safeguarded its national security and common international security. We have always adhered to the principles of fairness, rationality, and non-discrimination, and implemented export control measures prudently and appropriately,” the Commerce Ministry noted, before stressing, “The relevant US statement is a typical example of ‘double standards’.”
It added, “For a long time, the US has generalised national security, abused export controls, adopted discriminatory practices against China, and implemented unilateral long-arm jurisdiction measures on a wide range of products, including semiconductor equipment and chips. The US control list includes over 3,000 items, while China’s export control list includes over 900 items. The US has long used the de minimis content rule for export controls, which is as low as 0%. These US measures have seriously harmed the legitimate rights and interests of businesses, severely impacted the international economic and trade order, and seriously undermined the security and stability of the global production and supply chain.”