Beijing confirms it is ‘evaluating trade talks with US’

China’s Commerce Ministry has said it’s assessing the possibility of tariff talks with Washington, with crippling levies leading to rising numbers of factory workers being put on indefinite leave.

Beijing has confirmed it is assessing the possibility of talks with Washington over tariffs. Picture: AFP.

Beijing has said it is “evaluating” whether to start trade talks with the Trump administration, as crippling levies lead to rising numbers of factory workers being put on indefinite leave in the world’s second biggest economy.

Revealing the tactical change in a statement on Friday morning, China’s Commerce Ministry noted that Washington had “taken the initiative” in seeking negotiations, continuing Beijing’s efforts to cast America as the more desperate party.

“The US has recently sent messages to China through relevant parties, hoping to start talks with China,” the ministry said. “China is currently evaluating this.”

However, Beijing also repeated its willingness to continue the trade stand-off, even as economic data shows the rising cost on the Chinese economy of the huge imposts.

“China’s position is consistent. If we fight, we will fight to the end; if we talk, the door is open. The tariff war and trade war were unilaterally initiated by the United States. If the United States wants to talk, it should show its sincerity and be prepared to correct its wrong practices and cancel the unilateral tariffs,” the Commerce Ministry said.

The softening in Beijing’s position comes only days after China’s Foreign Ministry released a video titled “Never kneel down!” that presented the Chinese government as a champion of world international trade and justice.

It also follows the release of manufacturing data in China this week that showed factory activity had shrunk in the weeks following the tariffs and amid reports of increasing numbers of workers being put on indefinite leave.

“It’s definitely worse than expected,” said Robin Xing, chief China economist at Morgan Stanley.

Beijing and Washington have been verbally abusing each other over the past month, with each side claiming that the other has reached out to discuss scaling back levies.

President Donald Trump this week seized on China’s bad economic data, as he also comes under pressure as American corporate giants warn of huge hits to their earnings because of the tariffs.

“Right now … they’re having tremendous difficulty because their factories are not doing business,” said Mr Trump on Wednesday, adding that the US could do without Chinese goods.

The Commerce Ministry’s Friday statement followed messaging put out by influential Chinese social media accounts that appeared to be efforts in public opinion management before Beijing’s change.

Earlier in the week, Yuyuan Tantian, a social-media account affiliated with the state broadcaster CCTV, posted on the blogging platform Weibo: “If the United States wishes to engage with China, there is no harm to China at this stage.”

The account noted that the US had “taken the initiative to contact China through multiple channels in hopes of negotiating with the Chinese side on tariffs” and said this confirmed that America was “the more anxious party”.

Both Washington and Beijing have taken measures to relieve some of the pain their huge imposts have caused.

The White House gave smartphones and laptops an exception from its 145 per cent levy on imports from China, although Mr Trump has said those are only a temporary reprieve.

Beijing has also quietly given exemptions from its retaliatory tariffs of 125 per cent on imports from the US for American products including pharmaceuticals, microchips, semiconductors and jet engines,

Mr Trump said last week that the 145 per cent rate would come down “substantially” if the two sides were able to negotiate a deal.

He also claimed last week his administration was talking to China and President Xi had called him, a claim Beijing denied, accusing Washington of “misleading the public.”

Beijing has been adamant it won’t rush to the negotiating table, with the foreign ministry likening yielding to Mr Trump’s tariffs to “drinking poison.”

The American president wants to negotiate directly with Mr Xi, but Chinese officials have said trade negotiators from each side would need to reach at least some agreement before leader-level talks could take place.

Even as analysts forecast that more than 10 million jobs in China rely on American exports, many in the country responded to the Commerce Ministry’s statement by urging their government to stand firm.

“The US government changes its mind several times a day and does not keep its word. The tariff war must continue,” said one popular nationalist commentator.