Chinese Economy to Stay Unaffected by Trade Disputes With US - Statistics Bureau

BEIJING (Sputnik) - The trade conflict between Beijing and Washington will not affect the Chinese economy and its development prospects, the director general of the Comprehensive Statistics Department of the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics, Xing Zhihong, said Tuesday.

"I know that you are all interested in how China-US trade disputes will be further developing and what impact it may have on the Chinese economy. I want to say that over many years the Chinese economy has been demonstrating good progress while preserving its stability and resilience. Trade disputes will not affect the Chinese economy and its impulse for development. The Chinese economy is highly flexible, it means it can easily adapt to changes," Xing said at a briefing.

According to the official, the United States has ignored international trade rules which led to a trade conflict between the two countries.

"Such unilateral protectionism has raised concerns across the world. China has decisively spoken against it. We also adopted decisive measures to counteract the US actions," he noted.

In recent weeks, trade relations between China and the United States have deteriorated. In March, US President Donald Trump signed an order to impose a 25-percent tariff on imported steel and a 10-percent tariff on imported aluminum, after which he issued a memorandum introducing $60 billion in extra tariffs on China over allegations of intellectual property theft.

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In response, China introduced its own tariffs on goods produced in the United States. Both countries have said that they could implement further mutual restrictions. In early April, Trump suggested introducing an additional $100 billion in tariff against China in response to Beijing's "unfair retaliation."