‘President Xi just had a bad moment…’: Trump signals calm as US-China trade war flares up again
US President Donald Trump on October 12 sought to calm global concerns over rapidly deteriorating trade relations with China, saying the situation “will all be fine,” even as both sides issued sharp warnings and fresh retaliatory threats over tariffs and rare-earth export controls.
“Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine! Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment. He doesn’t want Depression for his country, and neither do I. The U.S.A. wants to help China, not hurt it!!!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
His remarks came shortly after Vice President JD Vance warned Beijing to “choose the path of reason” amid the latest escalation in the US-China trade standoff. Speaking on Fox News, Vance emphasized that the Trump administration “has far more cards than the People’s Republic of China” but hoped both sides would avoid a full-blown trade war.
“It’s going to be a delicate dance, and a lot of it will depend on how the Chinese respond,” Vance said. “If they respond in a highly aggressive manner, I guarantee you the president of the United States has far more leverage. If, however, they’re willing to be reasonable, then the U.S. would be reasonable, too.”
$2 Trillion market meltdown
The rhetoric follows President Trump’s announcement on Friday of an additional 100% tariff on Chinese imports beginning November 1, in retaliation for Beijing’s decision to tighten export controls on rare earth minerals — key inputs for semiconductors, electric vehicles, and defense technologies.
The move sent shockwaves through financial markets, wiping out nearly $2 trillion in US stock value in a single day, as investors feared a renewed global trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
Trump said the new duties would add to the existing 30% tariff, raising total levies on Chinese goods to 130%, but hinted he could roll them back if Beijing reversed its export curbs. He also announced plans for new US export restrictions on critical software to take effect the same day.
China pushes back
In a strongly worded response, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce accused Washington of “a textbook double standard,” saying Trump’s tariff threats were “not the right way to get along with China.”
“China’s position on the trade war is consistent: we do not want it, but we are not afraid of it,” the spokesperson said.
Beijing on Thursday unveiled expanded export curbs covering five additional rare-earth elements and dozens of pieces of refining technology, alongside new compliance requirements for foreign companies that rely on Chinese-sourced materials.
The measures underscore China’s dominance in the rare-earth supply chain — a critical leverage point in global manufacturing — and signal its willingness to retaliate against American pressure.
APEC Summit uncertainty
Trump’s sharp tone also cast doubt on a potential meeting with President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea later this month. While initially suggesting he might pull out, Trump later clarified the meeting had not been canceled but said he was unsure “if they were going to have it.”
The standoff threatens to derail the fragile trade truce maintained in recent months and rekindles tensions that had been dormant since Trump’s return to the White House. With both sides now escalating tariffs and controls, analysts warn that a renewed trade war could disrupt global supply chains and stall post-pandemic recovery efforts.