As trade war heats up, China’s premier wants focus on positive market expectations

Chinese authorities are making every effort to reassure businesses and individuals about China’s economic growth potential as a full-blown trade war with the United States dampens confidence and threatens jobs.

At a State Council meeting in Beijing on Thursday that focused on guiding market expectations, Premier Li Qiang called on officials to promote positive expectations to “form a strong synergy in society to cope with risks and challenges”.

“China will always be fertile ground for foreign investment and trade,” He said.

The vice-premier had just finished an inspection of the Canton Fair, China’s largest trade expo, where exporters were feeling the effects of tariffs of up to 245 per cent imposed by the US.

The world’s two largest economies are locked in a trade war marked by tit-for-tat tariffs. Beijing vowed to “fight to the end” after Washington announced “reciprocal tariffs” on all its trading partners at the beginning of the month.