The headline might look optimistic but the rest of the white paper and accompanying comments seem to be a bit more feisty. I think markets are reading too much into the headline remark, as it has been the case with other headlines before this. Here are the rest of the headlines from this:
- The US will not solve its own problems by raising tariffs
- China urges dialogue with US to resolve trade dispute
- It is normal for China and US to have differences and frictions in economy, trade
- China firmly opposes US tariffs and will not accept this kind of bullying
- If US wants to resolve the problem via dialogue, it should show equality, respect
- China will continue to take measures to safeguard its rights, interests
But again as mentioned earlier here, a big positive is that we're not seeing China fight back with countermeasures or counter-tariffs. Typically by now, you'd see them do that. However, Trump escalating the situation this week clearly shows that there is no good to come from going down that route.
So, this seems to be a more measured response for the time being.
