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Trump defends tariffs, Beijing accuses him of ‘abuse’ and protectionism

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The US president underlines the benefits for the American economy, while China denounces the repercussions on developing countries

US President Donald Trump returns to defend his choice of tariffs again today, Monday 7 April. ‘The long abused US is collecting billions of dollars a week from profiteering countries with the duties already in place,’ he wrote in a post on social Truth. ‘Oil prices are down, interest rates are down (the slow Fed is supposed to cut rates!), food prices are down and there is no inflation.’

At the same time, China harshly criticised US trade policy. Beijing Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian accused the US of ‘abusing’ tariffs, saying that such behaviour deprives countries, especially those in the Global South, of their right to development. According to Beijing, the increase in US tariffs will worsen economic inequalities between developed and less developed countries, with the latter suffering the most. Lin also referred to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), arguing that efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, set for 2030, could be ‘severely compromised’.

The WTO estimates that the new tariffs, together with those introduced since the beginning of the year, could lead to an overall one per cent contraction in global merchandise trade volumes in 2025, a reduction of almost four percentage points from previous projections, according to Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

For its part, Beijing has repeatedly accused the US of ‘bullying’ and ‘protectionism’. Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, speaking at the Boao Forum, emphasised that China is strengthening ties with the Global South and improving the resilience of Asian economies against US tariff policies. In fact, China has invested in many developing countries, with Xi Jinping presenting support measures for the Global South at the G20 in Brazil last year. According to the Guardian, China has more than a dozen free trade agreements with countries in the Global South, many of which stem from US demand.

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