China puts trade talks with U.S. on ice
China is sending signals that it's in no hurry to resume trade negotiations with the U.S. Trade talks between the two nations abruptly broke off last Friday after the U.S. raised tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports. This week, China retaliated by imposing tariffs on $60 billion of U.S. goods, and the White House banned Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei on national security grounds.
Asked on Friday whether talks would resume, China foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said the U.S. needed to show sincerity.
"Because of certain things the U.S. side has done during the previous China-U.S. trade consultations, we believe if there is meaning for these talks, there must be a show of sincerity," he said, according to Reuters. At the same time, he said China "encouraged resolving disputes between the two countries with dialogue and consultations."
U.S. stocks fell more than 100 points in early trading Friday before recovering. Chipmakers, which depend on a free flow of components between China and the U.S., were hit especially hard. Earlier this week Deere, an agriculture equipment giant, lowered its outlook for the year, citing trade issues.
A prolonged trade war could lower U.S. growth this year by 0.1%, according to Oxford Economics, which also found that higher prices consumers could see because of tariffs on Chinese imports could wipe out any gains from 2017 tax cuts for many Americans. The tariffs "will increasingly weigh on middle and low-income families' purchasing power, representing a non-negligible risk for the economy, Oxford Economics' Gregory Daco wrote in a note.
Already, consumers are spending less. Nearly half of the people surveyed by Bank of America said they reduced their spending as a result of "market and political events," the bank reported.
