On Friday morning, a spokesperson for China's ministry of commerce announced that Beijing was assessing the possibility of tariff negotiations with the United States.
It was news the rest of the world had been waiting to hear as astonishingly high tariffs - up to 245% on some Chinese exports to the US - throttle trade between the world's two biggest economies, raising the spectre of a recession.
"US officials have repeatedly expressed their willingness to negotiate with China on tariffs," the spokesperson told reporters.
"China's position is consistent. If we fight, we will fight to the end; if we talk, the door is open... If the US wants to talk, it should show its sincerity and be prepared to correct its wrong practices and cancel unilateral tariffs."
The statement comes a day after a Weibo account linked to Chinese state media said the US had been seeking to initiate discussions, and a week after Trump claimed discussions were already underway – a suggestion Beijing denied.
"China has no need to talk to the United States," Yuyuantantian, a Weibo account affiliated with China Central Television (CCTV), said in Thursday's post. "From the perspective of negotiations, the United States must be the more anxious party at present."
Such comments follow a cycle of assertions and denials from both the US and China, as each side refuses to publicly initiate discussions.
The question is not whether those discussions will take place, but rather when, under what circumstances and at whose behest.
Ja Ian Chong, an assistant professor of political science at the National University of Singapore, notes that the ongoing exchanges are expected since neither Washington nor Beijing wants to appear as the one conceding.
He adds, 'However, a reduction in tensions would ultimately benefit both parties, providing a significant incentive for them to pursue it.' Wen-Ti Sung, affiliated with the Australian Centre on China in the World, likens the situation to two race cars heading towards each other: the first to veer off course will be perceived as the weaker competitor. Currently, neither side is willing to appear lenient.
The leader who acknowledges being the first to propose tariff discussions risks being viewed as compromising their negotiation stance. 'The party that appears most desperate forfeits bargaining power,' Mr. Sung explains. 'Both sides aim to depict the other as the more needy one.'
A victory on our home turf:
Trump clearly aims to demonstrate that he has forced Beijing to yield. On the other hand, Xi likely seeks to prove to his citizens and the global community that he has managed to influence Trump towards a more reasonable and accommodating stance," Mr. Chong remarks.
Domestically, both leaders are grappling with challenges stemming from tariffs. This week, Trump faced difficulties in alleviating recession fears as new data revealed that the US economy shrank in the first quarter for the first time since 2022.
Simultaneously, Xi, who was already contending with low consumer spending, a property crisis, and rising unemployment before the tariffs, must reassure the Chinese populace that he can navigate the trade war and safeguard an economy struggling to recover from the pandemic.
"Both Trump and Xi understand that at this stage of the trade war, a winner-takes-all scenario is no longer feasible for either side," Mr. Sung observes.
"Trump recognises he's not going to get anywhere near 100% of what he wants, so he's trying to find a concession point where China can let him have just enough winning, especially for domestic purposes."
While China is not unwilling, he adds, "they are very much stuck on what's the right price point".
"The China side needs to manage US-China bilateral negotiations, while domestically Beijing needs to save enough face so that the Chinese leadership can hold on to this narrative of 'the East is rising and the West is declining'," he says.
"A kowtowing of the East towards the West is not a rising East."
"The two sides are talking," he says. "And that is a sign that there is some possibility that some accommodation could be reached."
But the start of negotiations does not mean that the US-China relationship - which was rocky even before Trump kicked off a trade war - is close to being steadied.
Mr Chong isn't holding his breath. For one, he believes the "posturing" suggests the two sides have not reached the point "where they are both trying to seek a way out".
"[Each party] may hope that there are concessions from the other side, so they're going to have this standoff until they see which side blinks first."
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