- Friday, May 02, 2025
A Chinese government-backed outlet has claimed that the Trump administration has approached Beijing for talks to end the bitter trade war
By: India Weekly
IN A significant twist to the trade war between the United States and China, a Beijing-backed outlet claimed on Thursday (1) that the Trump administration has approached China for talks.
“The US has proactively reached out to China through multiple channels, hoping to hold discussions on the tariff issue,” said Yuyuan Tantian, a Chinese outlet linked to state broadcaster CCTV.
The post was published on its official Weibo social media account, citing anonymous sources.
“From a negotiation standpoint, the US is currently the more anxious party,” the outlet claimed.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that China has reached out for talks on the tariffs.
And on Wednesday (30), he reiterated there was a “very good chance we’re going to make a deal”.
“But we’re going to make it on our terms and it’s got to be fair,” he told a NewsNation “town hall”.
He also argued that the US did not need many of the things China produced.
“Maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls. And maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more than they would normally,” he said.
Beijing has vehemently denied any talks are taking place while repeatedly urging the United States to engage in dialogue in a “fair, respectful and reciprocal” manner.
But it has also said it will fight a trade war to the bitter end if needed, with a video posted on social media this week by its foreign ministry vowing to “never kneel down!”
Shrinking economy
The US economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of the year on an import surge triggered by Donald Trump’s tariff plans.
But the president pinned the blame squarely on his predecessor Joe Biden.
The sharp increase in imports was a reflection of businesses and consumers stockpiling foreign goods to get ahead of Trump’s sweeping trade levies, which went into effect earlier this month.
At a cabinet meeting in Washington, Trump insisted the growth downturn was the legacy of former president’s policies.
“That’s Biden, that’s not Trump,” he said.
Striking a more positive tone, he highlighted the “whopping” 22 per cent rise in gross domestic investment during the first quarter.
Annual economic growth stayed above two percent in every year of Biden’s presidency, reaching 2.8 percent in 2024.
The gross domestic product (GDP) of the world’s largest economy decreased at an annual rate of 0.3 per cent in the first quarter, after growing 2.4 percent in the final months of 2024, according to Wednesday’s first estimate from the US Commerce Department.
The Commerce Department said in a statement that the contraction was in large part down to an “upturn in imports,” aided by a decline in consumer and government spending.
In a statement, the White House called GDP a “backward-looking indicator.”
“It’s no surprise the leftovers of Biden’s economic disaster have been a drag on economic growth,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
“But the underlying numbers tell the real story of the strong momentum President Trump is delivering.”
