Tensions between the US and China continue to swirl, even though fears of a renewed trade war cooled on Monday.
US treasury secretary Scott Bessent has thrown more fuel on the fire overnight, by accusing China of trying to hurt the world’s economy.
Bessent criticised Beijing for imposing new export controls on rare earths last week – a move which riled president Trump – suggesting the move would backfire.
He told the Financial Times: “This is a sign of how weak their economy is, and they want to pull everybody else down with them. Maybe there is some Leninist business model where hurting your customers is a good idea, but they are the largest supplier to the world. If they want to slow down the global economy, they will be hurt the most.”
Bessent’s comments come as the mood in the markets turns sour again, after a rally on Monday after Trump seemed to calm a situation which he inflamed on Friday by threatening China with 100% tariffs
Stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region are mainly in the red today, with China’s CSI 300 index down 0.6%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng losing 1.2% and Japan’s Nikkei dropping by 2.1%.
Cryptocurrencies are also weakening, with bitcoin dropping by 2.7% and ether shedding 5%.
The row threatens to overshadow the annual meetings of the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which are taking place in Washington DC this week.
Today’s key events
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