Trump tariffs live: China responds after Trump threatens new 50% tariffs

Sir Keir Starmer will be questioned by senior MPs today amid turmoil in global markets caused by US tariffs, which Donald Trump has insisted he will not pause.

The prime minister is expected to hold a cabinet meeting of his most senior ministers in Downing Street this morning, before he heads to parliament, where he will appear before the Liaison Committee of senior parliamentarians.

The US president has imposed a 10 per cent tariff on US imports of British goods, along with the 25% tariff on cars and separate import taxes for steel and aluminium.

Sir Keir warned the tariffs were “not a passing phase” as he visited Jaguar Land Rover’s West Midlands plant yesterday, but urged workers at the car maker to remain calm.

“This is a moment for cool heads, nobody wins from a trade war, you know that,” he said.

JPMorgan Chase chief executive Jamie Dimon has warned that trade wars could have lasting negative consequences, days after he and other US bank bosses met with commerce secretary Howard Lutnick to discuss the administration’s sweeping tariffs.

“The economy is facing considerable turbulence,” Mr Dimon wrote. “We are likely to see inflationary outcomes … Whether or not the menu of tariffs causes a recession remains in question, but it will slow down growth.”

Mr Dimon’s annual letter to shareholders followed a rout last week that wiped trillions of dollars off global stock markets in the wake of president Donald Trump’s new tariffs.

Mr Dimon and other bank chiefs reportedly met with Mr Lutnick in Washington on Thursday, a day after the tariffs were announced, to discuss the levies and ask questions.

ReadThe Independent’s breakdown of the countries most affected by the new levies and those that have been exempt.

China’s yuan fell to its weakest level in more than 18 months after the central bank slightly loosened its grip on the currency in what appears to be an attempt to counteract the blow to exports.

The People’s Bank of China set the fixing at 7.2038 per dollar today, the weakest since September 2023. Weakening the currency is seen as an option for China to make exports cheaper and alleviate some pressure on trade amid the escalating tariff spat between the world’s two largest economies.

US president Donald Trump has threatened to increase duties on Chinese imports by another 50 per cent, following their tit-for-tat tariffs on each other’s goods last week.

“After the market saw China’s firm retaliation on Friday, expectation for China to eventually devalue the currency has jumped and the pressure won’t go away easily,” said Ju Wang, head of Greater China FX & rates strategy at BNP Paribas.

Hong Kong leader John Lee said the city will remain an international free port even after Donald Trump’s tariffs threaten to hurt the financial hub’s economy.

Mr Lee said the city would sign more free trade pacts to diversify its risk amid a global trade war triggered by what he called “ruthless” US tariffs.

“The US no longer adheres to free trade, arbitrarily undermining the internationally established rules of world trade, and its ruthless behaviour damages global and multilateral trade,” Mr Lee, who was sanctioned by the US in 2020 for his role in the rights crackdown in Hong Kong, told reporters.

Hong Kong, as an international trade hub, will be affected by US tariffs in the short term but Mr Lee said the city not planning to impose any retaliatory tariffs on the US right now.

Bangladesh’s interim government has urged the US to postpone a 37 per cent tariff on the South Asian country for at least three months, citing efforts to boost imports from the US.

Bangladeshi exporters, especially in the garment sector, are bracing for the impact of the tariff.

The delay would allow Dhaka to “smoothly implement its initiative to substantially increase US exports to Bangladesh,” the office of chief adviser Muhammad Yunus said in a statement.“

We are the first country to take such a pro-active initiative,” Dr Yunus wrote, referring to the February visit of his representative, Khalilur Rahman, to Washington to begin trade discussions.

Bangladesh has signed a multi-year agreement to import liquified natural gas from the US and plans to increase purchases of cotton, wheat, corn and soybeans, according to the statement.

Dr Yunus said Bangladesh maintains the lowest tariffs on US exports in South Asia and plans further cuts. He also listed reforms underway to ease non-tariff barriers:

“We are eliminating certain testing requirements, rationalizing packaging, labelling and certification rules, and simplifying customs procedures and standards.”

Japan is expected to be prioritised in the US tariff talks following a phone call between Donald Trump and prime minister Shigeru Ishiba, who urged the US president to rethink his tariff policies.T

alks between the US and a long line of countries seeking to roll back Mr Trump’s “reciprocal” duties are scheduled to kick in on Wednesday.

Treasury secretary Scott Bessent, who will lead the American side of the negotiation, said: “I would expect that Japan is going to get priority” among trading partners for coming forward very quickly

.Mr Trump’s decision to impose a 25 per cent levy on auto imports, and another 24 per cent tariff on other Japanese goods, is expected to deal a huge blow to Japan’s export-heavy economy.”Countries from all over the world are talking to us. Tough but fair parameters are being set,” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The Japanese prime minister said he told Mr Trump in a telephone call that his tariff policies are extremely disappointing and urged him to rethink.

“So we have a great relationship with Japan. We’re going to keep it that way,” Mr Trump later told reporters.

Taiwan can negotiate with the US at any time on the tariffs issue, foreign minister Lin Chia-lung said today, as the island’s stock market pared losses, having plummeted the previous day on trade fears.

Major semiconductor producer Taiwan, hit with a 32 per cent duty, was singled out by US president Donald Trump as among the US trading partners with one of the highest trade surpluses with the country.

Mr Lin said that Taiwan is ready to talk about a variety of issues with the US, including investment in and purchases from the country and non-tariff barriers.

“As long as there is a confirmed time and method for negotiations, they can be discussed at any time with the United States,” he added.

Taiwan’s benchmark stock index, which logged its worst fall ever yesterday, down almost 10 per cent, made up some of those losses this morning.

Asian markets appear to be making rebounds after a gut-wrenching few days for investors following US president Donald Trump’s tariffs on dozens of nations.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 rebounded strongly to rise 6.41 per cent during opening trade after Mr Trump and Japan prime minister Shigeru Ishiba agreed to open trade talks in a phone call yesterday.

In South Korea, the Kospi rose 1.7 per cent and the small-cap Kosdaq climbed 2.35 per cent.China’s Shanghai Composite limped up to 0.8 per cent.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped 3 per cent, recovering some of the massive losses it suffered on Monday when it plunged 13.2 per cent.