President Trump dialed back the heat on China Sunday, just days after threatening a massive 100% tariff on all Chinese imports in response to Beijing’s new export controls.
“Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine! Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
“He doesn’t want Depression for his country, and neither do I. The U.S.A. wants to help China, not hurt it!!!” he wrote.
Earlier in the day, Beijing hit back hard — China’s Commerce Ministry warned Washington to drop the “threats,” promising to “resolutely take corresponding measures” if the U.S. pushed ahead with the tariff hike.
“We do not want a tariff war, but we are not afraid of one,” the ministry said, calling tariff threats “not the correct way to get along with China.”
On Friday, Trump announced sweeping new measures on Chinese goods and even threatened to call off his planned October 29 meeting with President Xi Jinping.
A container ship arrives at the Port of Oakland, California. Getty Images
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivering a video speech to the United Nations Climate Summit 2025. ZUMAPRESS.com
The trade clash reignited Thursday after China’s Commerce Ministry rolled out a new rule requiring companies to seek approval before exporting products made with rare-earth minerals — from batteries and semiconductors to advanced magnetic technologies.
Trump warned the move could strangle the global economy - cutting off critical parts for everything from electronics to clean-energy tech around the world.
Beijing’s new rule would require foreign companies to secure licenses to export any product containing more than 0.1% rare earths - a move that escalates its trade showdown with Washington over the semiconductor chips powering phones, computers, and AI data centers.
China now supplies nearly 90% of the world’s rare-earth minerals — the key ingredients in everything from smartphones to electric vehicles, The Wall Street Journal reports.
U.S. stocks plunged Friday after Trump threatened a “massive increase” in tariffs on China.
Wall Street took a hit Friday: the Dow fell 878 points (1.9%) to 45,479.60, while the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq slid 2.7% and 3.6%. It was the sharpest single-day drop for all three indexes since April.
Trump warned that Beijing has until November 1 to change course.
China controls about 70% of global rare earths mining and nearly 90% of processing capacity. Getty Images
Trump’s threat was initially triggered by new Chinese restrictions on the export of rare earths. REUTERS
On Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures, Vice President JD Vance threw his weight behind Trump, describing the matter as one of national security.
“It’s going to be a delicate dance, and a lot of it is going to depend on how the Chinese respond. If they respond in a highly aggressive manner, I guarantee you the President of the United States has far more cards than the People’s Republic of China,” Vance said on air Sunday.
China’s Commerce Ministry slammed the U.S. for pressing forward with new port fees on Chinese ships, effective Tuesday, and retaliated by announcing Friday that American ships would face similar charges.
