US wants to start trade talks: China state media

The United States has apparently approached China for trade talks, a social media account affiliated with Chinese state media revealed on May 1.

Citing anonymous sources, Yuyuan Tantian said the U.S. has "proactively reached out to China through multiple channels" in the hopes of holding discussions on the "tariff issue".

The post was published on its official Weibo social media account.

China Daily also reported on the matter.

The talks are over president Donald Trump's 145 per cent tariffs and such an approach signals China's openness to negotiations, Reuters reported.

What are China's conditions

The post from Yuyuan Tantian, citing anonymous experts, added: "Before the U.S. takes any substantive action, China has no need to engage in talks with the U.S."

"However, if the U.S. wishes to initiate contact, there is no harm at this stage for China to engage."

"China needs to observe closely, even force out the U.S.' true intentions, to maintain the initiative in both negotiation and confrontation," it concluded, according to Reuters, which translated the post.

The post also highlighted U.S. economic data, saying Washington was "definitely the more anxious party" for negotiations.

"If it is a fight, we’ll see it through to the end," said Yuyuan Tantian.

Beijing's approach on a few fronts

Reuters also reported that Beijing's has been observed to have responded to the U.S. imposed tariffs in a few ways.

Beijing has shown it is angry publicly and said the tariffs are tantamount to bullying the world's second largest economy.

It has also rallied public and global condemnation of the import curbs and showed it is not interested in seeking a reprieve.

Behind the scenes, China has also quietly created a list of U.S.-made products to be exempted from its retaliatory 125 per cent tariffs.

The goods include select pharmaceuticals, microchips and jet engines, Reuters reported.

Trump's comments

Trump said on Apr. 30 that he believed there was a "very good chance" a deal with China could be reached.

His comments came hours after Chinese president Xi Jinping called on officials to adjust to changes in the international environment, but not mentioning United States.

A week earlier on Apr. 25, Trump claimed that Xi had called him and his administration was talking to China.

China refuted the claim.

Background

Analysts have assessed that once Trump's tariffs had hit 35 per cent, they were already prohibitively high for Chinese exporters.

A 50 per cent drop in Chinese exports to the U.S. could see some 16 million Chinese people lose their jobs.

But that has not shaken Beijing's resolve to not budge in the face of even more tariff threats.

The Chinese foreign ministry previously said yielding to Trump's tariffs is akin to "drinking poison" and it will not rush to negotiate but stand firm.

Top photo via White House