Apr 14, 2025 - Business

China's Xi says tariffs war "will produce no winner"

Rebecca Falconer

In this photo illustration portraits of US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are displayed on computer screen as US flag is seen in Ankara, Turkiye on April 10, 2025. — President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are displayed on a computer screen in a photo illustration. Photo: Dilara Irem Sancar/Anadolu via Getty Images

Chinese leader Xi Jinping said nations need to "safeguard the multilateral trading system, stable global industrial and supply chains, and open and cooperative international environment" in an article published in China and Vietnam on Monday.

Why it matters: Xi is trying to portray China as a "responsible superpower in the way that contrasts with the way the U.S." under President Trump "presents to the whole world," said Nguyen Khac Giang, a visiting fellow at Singapore's ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute, to AP.

What they're saying: "Trade war and tariff war will produce no winner, and protectionism will lead nowhere," said Xi, who did not name the U.S. nor Trump in the editorial that was published as he visits Vietnam.

The big picture: Trump paused hard-hitting tariffs except on Chinese imports the day they took effect last week and after the White House listed semiconductors as "excepted products" from China import levies. Trump said Sunday he'd impose levies on chips "over the next week," though he indicated he could offer flexibility to some companies.

Meanwhile, Xi raised China's levies on goods imported from the U.S. to 125% in response to Trump's 145% levies.

Go deeper: How China will ensure the trade war hurts the U.S.

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China's Xi says tariffs war "will produce no winner"

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