Beijing: China on Thursday denounced a US decision to double the tariffs on steel, aluminum, and related products, warning that it harms others as well as the US.
According to Kuwait News Agency, in a press conference, the Chinese News Agency Xinhua quoted the spokeswoman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, He Yongqian, as saying that her country had repeatedly stressed that the tariffs applied by Washington under Article (232) of the “Trade Expansion Act” of 1962 were “a model of unilateral and protectionist practices.” She noted that the World Trade Organization’s dispute settlement mechanism ruled that these tariffs violated WTO rules in 2022, stressing that the US move, which was met with opposition from several countries, does not help protect the integrity of domestic sectors but will severely disrupt the stability of global industrial and supply chains.
The spokeswoman urged the US to respect economic law, avoid a zero-sum mentality, and stop expanding and abusing the concept of national security.
She also called on the US to work with all countries to maintain the rules-based multilateral trading system and address each other’s concerns through equal dialogue.