"The USA's threat to escalate tariffs against China is a mistake on top of a mistake, which once again reveals the USA's coercive nature," says a spokesperson for China's trade department.
"China will never accept this. If the USA insists on going its own way, China will fight it to the end," continues the spokesperson.
104 percent
Trump announced on Monday that Beijing must back down from introducing its 34-percent retaliatory tariffs against the USA – otherwise, Washington will add another 50 percent on top of the tariffs he announced on Wednesday.
Furthermore, all planned talks between Washington and Beijing will be cancelled, Trump wrote in a post on his platform Truth Social.
Trump's latest tariff threat would mean, after several previous tariff hikes against China, that many Chinese goods could be subject to tariffs totaling 104 percent, according to AFP, citing statements from the White House.
Resolute countermeasures
But China signals that it will not back down.
"If the USA escalates its tariff measures, China will resolutely take countermeasures to protect its own rights and interests," the Chinese trade department announced in its statement on Tuesday.
China is also urging the USA to withdraw its tariff regime against the country and re-establish a "dialogue based on mutual respect".
