Customs duties: China denies any negotiations with the United States

Kinshasa, April 24^th, 2025 (CPA) – China has denied on Thursday ‘the existence of negotiations with Washington’, after the American president speeches having suggested the possibility of an agreement between the two countries on the customs duties imposed by Donald Trump, the international media have reported. ‘As the authority in charge of foreign economic and trade relations, I would like to emphasise that there are currently no trade negotiations underway between China and the United States,’ has declared He Yadong, spokesman for the Ministry in charge of Commerce. ‘Any affirmation concerning a progress in Sino-American discussions is pure speculation and is not based on any concrete facts’, the source has added. The trade war launched by Donald Trump has resulted on 145% additional customs duties on Chinese products entering the United States, and 125% decided by Beijing in reprisal on goods coming from the United States. Beijing, which says to be ready to fight the trade war ‘to the bitter end’, has also appeared to be annoyed on several occasions at the negotiations that other countries are holding with Washington. For his part, the Chinese Minister in charge of Foreign Affairs had called last Tuesday on the United Kingdom and the European Union to defend « the multilateral trade order ». China and the EU should ‘work together to build an open world economy’, has declared Wang Yi to his Austrian counterpart, according to a press release from the Chinese Ministry in charge of Foreign Affairs. ‘The pressure, the threats and the blackmail are not acceptable methods for China’, has again insisted on Thursday the Chinese Ministry in charge of Commerce. The ministry has also reiterated China’s conditions for dialogue with Washington: « to show sincerity in discussions« , and « to return to dialogue on an equal footing ».