China’s patience with Donald Trump is running out – as trade war rhetoric ramps up
China’s premier has warned “changes unseen in a century are unfolding across the world” as a trade war with the US intensifies.
Li Qiang was speaking in parliament – a day after Washington slapped another 10% tariff on Chinese goods.
Beijing has responded with 10% to 15% tariffs on US food and agricultural products.
“Global economic growth lacks steam, unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise… the multilateral trading system is experiencing disruptions and tariff barriers continue to increase,” Premier Li added.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘Whatever they tariff us, we will tariff them’
The Chinese Embassy in the US has also dialled up the pressure, writing on X: “If war is what the US wants, be it tariff war, a trade war or any other type of war, we’re ready to fight till the end.”
This statement was first made by China’s ministry of foreign affairs on Tuesday. The fact that China has repeated it two days in a row is significant.
It is a pointed message to the US that China’s patience is running out – and its rhetoric about the tit-for-tat tariffs is growing harsher. It has called the tariff war “pressure”, “blackmail”, a “smear campaign” and “shifting the blame”.
But Mr Trump loves imposing tariffs on China and appears convinced the pressure will work. He blames China for exporting the chemical precursors used to make fentanyl, which has fuelled the US opioid epidemic.
Meanwhile, China is facing severe economic challenges at home, with the country setting a growth target of “about 5%” for this year.
The government’s work report said a major task this year is to boost consumption and domestic demand.
Money blog: Dollar sinks and market gains wiped out
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Why are tariffs such a big deal?
The problem in China is people aren’t spending enough money, instead they are cautiously saving. One reason for this is the weakness of China’s social welfare system. People save their money in case they lose their job, or to pay for health and elderly care.
The government says it wants to make domestic demand the engine of growth by turning several cities into “international consumption centres” – and expanding its trade-in system to encourage people to buy new products for the home.
Shopping aside, thousands of delegates from provinces across China attended including high-profile figures like former basketball star Yao Ming, and Lei Jun, who co-founded the electric vehicle manufacturing company Xiaomi.
After the session, delegates streamed into the square outside the Great Hall of the People. It is a chance to get their thoughts on the country’s future.
Congress delegate Liu Hui said: “I think tariffs will have little impact on China because we treat others the way they treat us.”
Another delegate from Shaanxi province, Song Yaping, is proud of China’s hi-tech prowess and said: “Our technology develops so fast, just look at DeepSeek, look at how fast our AI develops.”
Read more:
How Trump’s tariffs could cost consumers here
Analysis: The US may now be in a recession
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Peace in Europe, war with China?
Despite the confidence, the trade war is deepening.
In the factory heartland of Guangzhou in southern China, a glassware exporter is bracing for the impact of the latest Trump tariffs.
Marketing manager Anna said: “I think the people will discuss these tariffs and of course 10% is a huge number. Some companies can’t make a profit from this.
“But we can’t change it. We just have to get used to it and let it be.”
Still, letting it be is not easy in a world where it feels like everything is changing fast.
Elon Musk could be on track for a $1trn pay packet.
Tesla shareholders have approved the whopping financial package for the CEO – who’s already worth an estimated $491bn – if he hits a series of ambitious targets over the next 10 years.
But that $1trn figure (or £761,910,000,000) – which is both one thousand billion and one million million – is almost impossible to imagine for most people.
Even so, we have drilled down into the numbers and examined what you can do with a trillion US dollars – and it turns out, quite a lot.
Show me the money
Laid end to end, a trillion one-dollar bills would cover a distance of approximately 156 billion metres.
That could wrap around the equator 3,890 times, easily reach the sun from Earth (around 149.6 million km) or loop from Earth to the moon 405 times.
That many one-dollar notes could cover a massive area (roughly 10,339 km squared), meaning you could blanket nearly all of Lebanon or Jamaica in bills.
Spend it on sport
You could splash out on virtually all of the world’s major sporting leagues.
The clubs which make up the Premier League are relatively cheap ($30bn), and even when snapping up the UEFA Champions League clubs and the big five top divisions of Spain, Italy, Germany, and France, there’s still $858bn left in the kitty.
The four major US sports leagues for ice hockey, baseball, basketball, and American football (NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL) have a rough valuation of $544bn, according to Sportico.
But then add the IPL cricket league ($120bn) and F1 ($23.1bn) and Musk still has change from an estimated total spend of $829.7bn.
Elon Musk is in the money if he hits targets set by Tesla’s shareholders. File pic: AP
Take over Tesla’s rivals
He could buy up the top 15 largest publicly traded automakers (excluding Tesla) by market capitalisation.
They would include firms like Japan’s Toyota ($275bn), Chinese automaker BYD ($120bn), and luxury brands like Ferrari ($81bn) and Mercedes-Benz ($62bn), as well as BMW ($52bn), Volkswagen ($50bn) and Ford ($48bn).
But there would still be a little change left over; the total bill would be an eye-watering $992bn.
Buy up San Diego
He could buy up every single residential property in San Diego County – valued at a total of $1trn. Seattle is just slightly out of reach at $1.1trn, according to recent data from real estate firm Zillow.
But if he wanted to buy big – there is always Tennessee. The total value of homes in the US state is estimated at $957bn. Or there is Maryland, which at $1.01trn could be bought if he can find a little more cash behind the sofa.
Sadly, he would struggle to scoop up London’s entire housing stock, which in February was valued at just under £2trn ($2.53trn), according to agents Savills.
Cities like New York ($4.6trn) and Los Angeles ($3.9trn) are also not within his budget, hosting America’s most expensive residential markets.
Do something charitable?
There is always the possibility Musk could follow in the footsteps of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who intends to give away 99% of his vast fortune over the next 20 years.
He could give every single man, woman, and child in the US a share of his cash pile. They would receive approximately $2,917.32 (£2,223.29), based on a population estimate of 342.7 million.
Although it would be roughly $14,348.79 (£10,935.20) for every person (roughly 69.6 million) in the UK.
If he wanted to give the entire globe an early Christmas present, then based on the rough world population estimate of 8.2 billion, everyone would receive $121.80 (£92.87).
Pay off the credit card
With $1trn, he could instantly rewrite history and erase debt interest payments and the government debt from dozens of the world’s sovereign nations.
Or Musk could wipe out the debts of Singapore ($1trn) or South Korea ($0.99trn) in one go, according to figures from the International Monetary Fund’s latest World Economic Outlook (Oct 2025).
But when it comes to the biggest debt-laden countries, $1trn would not even touch the sides.
The US has $38.3trn of government debt (just over one third of the total global debt pile) while the UK has a modest $4.1trn.
-
Sports2 years agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports3 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment1 year agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024