MOFCOM: China-US trade negotiations have not begun

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Europe

01:41

China and the US have not started any negotiations concerning recent trade frictions, China's Commerce Ministry (MOFCOM) said on Thursday.

While the US has responded to China's request to the WTO on April 4 and 5 for negotiations over the heavy US tariffs on steel, aluminum and an array of goods from China, that response is only " procedural," said MOFCOM spokesman Gao Feng during a regular press conference.

The US has told the WTO it has agreed to have discussions with the Chinese government but insisted on citing national security reasons for the metal tariffs, with the White House arguing the WTO’s mechanism was unable to solve such issues, media reported on Wednesday.

China is well prepared to deal with any negative effects from its trade spat with the United States, said Gao, adding that Beijing hopes the US will not underestimate China's resolve to fight back.

If the US side persists in adopting a unilateralist protectionist policy and harms the interests of Chinese and US companies, China will fight resolutely back, he said.

China's tariffs on US imports will not have a big impact overall on Chinese industries, Gao added.

US measure against ZTE 'will backfire'

01:38

The US government on Monday banned US companies from selling components to ZTE for seven years, claiming that ZTE had made false statements to US officials, escalating trade tensions between the two sides.

Gao said China is closely watching the development of the issue, and stands ready to take necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

The US action has caused widespread concern about its trade and investment environment. Although the measure aims at China, it will ultimately hurt the US itself, causing tens of thousands of job losses and influence relative US companies, Gao said.