China unites countries against Trump’s bullying

By Adnan Akfirat, Chairman of the Turkish-Chinese Business Development and Friendship Association

On April 9, US President Trump imposed new tariffs on US imports under the name of “reciprocal tariffs”. Trump had announced that on April 2, 2025, which he called “Independence Day”, he would impose self-justified tariffs on almost every country in the world.

China, declaring that it would not give in and would fight “to the end”, imposed an additional 34% tariff on imports from the US. In retaliation, Trump imposed an additional 50% tariff on Chinese imports. Thus, Trump effectively doubled the tariffs on China. China responded by raising its tariffs by 50 percentage points to 84%. This significantly blocked US exports to China. Moreover, it took the lead in the fight against US bullying. Even the European Union decided to retaliate and imposed a 20% tariff on US products.

Stunned by China’s resolve, Trump raised the tariff on Chinese products to 145%! In order to isolate China, Trump announced a 90-day postponement of the new tariffs for more than 75 countries that did not retaliate.

The U.S. will be greatly harmed

We can say that Trump has launched a “Noah’s Flood” in the economic plan against the formation of a Multipolar World in order to “Make America Great Again” (MAGA). The great collapse in the financial markets showed that these decisions taken to weaken China will put the US in more difficulties.

Worldwide growth will slow down. The EU is going through the most difficult period in its history. It is clear that product prices and inflation will increase internationally. Under these conditions, developing countries with small domestic markets will be the most adversely affected by the deluge. Smaller markets such as ASEAN countries, on the other hand, have the opportunity to weather the deluge within the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), of which China is the backbone. (1)

Countries with relatively large domestic markets such as Turkiye, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Brazil, Russia and China have more opportunities to weather Trump’s onslaught. These countries are responding by adopting a more publicist orientation to develop their national economies and by increasing their cooperation among themselves. More importantly, developed countries in the Western camp, such as the EU, Japan and South Korea, are moving closer to China.

China’s attitude will be decisive in ensuring that humanity survives this deluge with minimal damage. We present to your attention an important assessment that has not been covered in the Western press and unfortunately not in the Turkish press.

China’s stance

The People’s Daily (Renmin Ribao), considered the voice of the Chinese Communist Party, published an editorial on April 7. (2)

The article makes four points:

“1. The US’s arbitrary imposition of tariffs will shake us, but the ‘sky will not fall.’ In the short term, it will inevitably have a negative impact on China’s exports and increase downward pressure on the economy. However, it should be remembered that China is a very large economy. We have a strong resilience to the US tariff bullying. We have actively built a diversified market in recent years and our dependence on the US market is decreasing. Already, China’s exports to the US have fallen from 19.2% in 2018 to 14.7% in 2024. The drop in exports to the US will not have a devastating impact on our economy.

U.S. more dependent on China

“However, the US is more dependent on China. The US cannot do without China for many consumer goods. Many investment goods and intermediates for its industry must be imported from China. US dependence on China exceeds 50% in several categories. As much as the US would like to, it is very difficult for it to find alternative suppliers in the international market in the short term.

“China’s economic and trade cooperation with developing countries is becoming increasingly fundamental. Today, China is the main trading partner of more than 150 countries and regions around the world. Since 2018, China’s exports to ASEAN have been growing fast, from 12.8% to 16.4%, and to countries in the Belt and Road Initiative, from 38.7% to 47.8%.

“Our large domestic market allows us to withstand the onslaught and is an important backstop. In 2024, about 85% of China’s exporting companies will also produce for the domestic market. Their domestic sales account for about 75% of their total sales. China is stepping up efforts to reduce dependence on exports and remove bottlenecks and bottlenecks in the transition to the domestic market. More importantly, it is intensifying and expanding policies to grow domestic demand.

The U.S. attacks, China gets stronger

“Since the US launched a trade war against China in 2017, we have steadily continued to develop and make progress. We have shown the world our resilience, our greatest strength in responding to external shocks, a structure that ‘grows stronger under pressure’. With the implementation of a series of new policies thanks to the CPC Political Bureau meeting on September 26, 2024, the domestic economy has continued to recover and improve. In the first quarter of this year, our economy is expected to reach over 5% growth. Restrictions and crackdowns will only serve to accelerate our breakthroughs in critical areas. We have addressed risks in areas such as the real estate sector, local government debt, and small and medium-sized financial institutions. Since the beginning of this year, the OECD and international financial institutions have repeatedly raised their forecasts for China’s economic growth. US big business sees Chinese ‘certainty’ as a safe haven to hedge against American ‘uncertainty’.

CPC predicted and advanced measures

“3. The CPC Central Committee has foreseen the new US economic and trade pressure offensive against us, fully anticipated its possible impact. Moreover, it has made plans to respond to them, and the necessary preliminary preparation has been prepared in detail. Many policies were agreed at this year’s ‘Bilateral Meeting’, such as setting this year’s budget deficit at around 4%. Governments at all levels will create ‘a different approach for each sector’ and ‘a strategy for each business’. It will provide decisive assistance to the more severely affected sectors and businesses. It will help businesses to maintain as much trade with the US as possible, while maintaining a focus on the domestic market and developing non-US markets. At the same time, we will call on the US to correct its wrong practices and consult with China and other countries around the world in an equal, respectful and mutually beneficial manner to resolve trade differences appropriately.

The ocean withstands every storm!

“4. We should view the American containment policy as a strategic opportunity to accelerate the construction of the New Development Model, promote High Quality Development and advance social harmony. As General Secretary Xi Jinping stated: ‘China’s economy is not a small pond, but a vast ocean’. Oceans can withstand the ravages of fierce storms, resist the cold invasion of the trade headwinds, and ultimately show the world the calm and solidity of the ‘ocean that embraces all rivers’.”

U.S.–China trade white paper

On April 8, the Chinese government published a White Paper on “US-China Trade” to defend itself against the attack launched by Trump on April 2 and to isolate the United States. The fact that it was prepared in such a short time shows that China was prepared.

Citing reliable sources and in great detail, the White Paper presents the full picture of trade relations between China and the US and refutes US accusations. Underlining that China is “committed to resolving disputes through dialogue and consultation”, the White Paper states that China will resist: “Since 2018, the US side has imposed tariffs on more than US$500 billion of Chinese exports. It has also consistently implemented policies aimed at containing and pressuring China. The Chinese side must take strong countermeasures to defend its national interests.” (3)

Noah’s ark: The domestic markets

US hegemony in international trade is based on its dollar reign, its financial and technological capacity, and its consumer power. Both of these are in fact choke points for the US. The speculative financial wheel of the US, which has lost its manufacturing power, is taking a hit. The dollar’s throne is crumbling. The US domestic market is shrinking.

President Erdoğan made important observations in his speech to the AK Party Parliamentary Group on April 8: “We see that the neoliberal economic and political order is being replaced by a more protectionist structure. Not only in Asia, Europe and America, but almost everywhere, governments are adopting policies aimed at strengthening society and the economy.” (4)

A large and integrated internal market is the foundation of inclusive international trade and economic self-determination. Domestic markets are “Noah’s Ark”.

An international trade order without the US is a long-term process. Strengthening economic cooperations such as BRICS and RCEP are the most important pillars for countries that rely on their domestic markets. Turkiye, which has to change its economic policy to protect its domestic market, should accelerate its efforts to become a full member of BRICS.

Footnotes

1. For the analysis of Chin-Yoong Wong, Professor of Economics at Tunku Abdul Rahman University Malaysia, see: https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202504/09/WS67f5ae05a3104d9fd381e326.html

2. Chinese version of the lead article in the April 2 edition of the People’s Daily: http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/pc/content/202504/07/content_30066174.html?utm

3. The full text of the White Paper published by the Inormation Office of the State Council of China was published in China Daily on April 8. https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202504/09/WS67f61b3fa3104d9fd381e5cf.html

4. Erdoğan’s speech in Aydınlık April 8, 2025 and other newspapers.