China says U.S. is 'opening fire' with tariffs

China on Thursday accused the Trump administration of "opening fire" with its proposed tariffs, warning that China would respond immediately if the U.S. goes through on Friday with new levies on $34 billion of Chinese imports, Reuters reported.

Trump has threatened to escalate the conflict with tariffs on up to $450 billion worth of Chinese goods if China imposes retaliatory tariffs. The tensions have roiled stock, currency, and commodity markets. China Commerce Ministry spokesman Gao Feng warned that the proposed U.S. tariffs would hurt everyone. "U.S. measures are essentially attacking global supply and value chains. To put it simply, the U.S. is opening fire on the entire world, including itself," he said. The Trump administration has said the U.S. only wants to be treated fairly.

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