“So what?” This was US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s blunt dismissal of China’s retaliatory 84% tariff on American goods, as the global trade war between the world’s two largest economies reached a fever pitch on Wednesday.
Bessent, speaking on Fox Business, argued that China’s ability to retaliate is limited. “They’re the surplus country… Their exports to the US are five times our exports to China. So they can raise their tariffs. But so what?” he said, accusing Beijing of being the “worst offenders in the international trading system” and lamenting their refusal to negotiate.
“No one wins in a war. But it’s proportionality. And the proportionality for the Chinese is going to be much worse,” Bessent said.
President Donald Trump’s sweeping 104% tariff on Chinese goods came into effect at midnight ET, escalating tensions further. In response, China not only raised its tariff on US goods from 34% to 84%, but also filed a formal complaint at the World Trade Organization and rolled out new restrictions on a dozen US companies, while adding six more to its “unreliable entity list.”
Despite the economic standoff, Bessent noted that Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping maintain a “very good personal relationship,” and said the US and China “can move together” if both sides realign — the US toward manufacturing, China toward consumption.
Trump, meanwhile, used his Truth Social platform to pitch the US as the ideal destination for global business relocation. “ZERO TARIFFS, and almost immediate Electrical/Energy hook ups and approvals. No Environmental Delays. DON’T WAIT, DO IT NOW!” he wrote, urging companies to shift operations to the US.
China’s State Council Tariff Commission hit back, calling the US tariffs “a mistake upon mistake” and warning they would not back down. “The US escalation of tariffs on China is severely infringing upon China’s legitimate rights and interests, and seriously damaging the multilateral trading system,” the commission said.
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