Reference Message Network reported on April 16 that the UK Daily Telegraph website published a report titled "We Will Not Yield to Bullying: China Faces Off Against Trump's Trade War" on April 14. The reporter was Chen Shiping (name transliteration). The report is excerpted as follows: Last week, US President Donald Trump raised the tariff rate on Chinese goods entering the United States to 145% and criticized Beijing for lack of respect. In response, the Chinese side strongly retaliated, calling these tariffs "a joke," and raised the tariff rate on American goods to 125%. These tariffs severely impacted Sino-US trade within a week. Winston Xiao (name transliteration) is one of many Chinese business owners who believe that Trump's scapegoating argument does not hold water. He said, "We have been doing business with the United States for decades, during which time all outsourcing by American companies has been for profit." He pointed out, "They have utilized China's low costs, the diligence and intelligence of employees, squeezing our profits to subsidize themselves. Now they blame us for their own socioeconomic problems? That is hypocritical." More than half of Mr. Xiao's company's revenue comes from the United States. He added, "Let me give you an example. A manufacturer sells their product for $10, of which approximately $6.5 is material cost, $1.5 is direct labor cost, and the remaining $2 is gross profit, used to cover miscellaneous expenses such as utilities. At best, the factory earns 50 cents in net profit, which is the net income." "The same product, when shipped to the United States, is priced at around $12.5 (before Trump increased the tariffs), covering freight and insurance costs, then sold to retailers like Walmart or Amazon at about $22. At Walmart, the retail price is $49.99. Now tell me, who is profiting more in this situation?" There are already signs that Trump realizes distancing from the world's factory will be harder than he initially thought. As part of a major concession at the White House, electronic products such as smartphones and laptops were exempted from "reciprocal tariffs," meaning approximately 23% of Chinese goods exported to the United States will avoid high tariffs. Despite these concessions, Mr. Xiao said that factory owners around him are prepared to persevere. "People cannot yield to bullies." Morgan Stanley's former chief Asian economist, now based in Shanghai, Andy Xie stated that China will weather this storm. He said, "The key is that the Chinese have savings." He pointed out, "On the other hand, many American families live paycheck to paycheck. They have no savings. This is why they need government assistance when crises arise. They are really vulnerable to economic turmoil." He noted, "Looking at (American) retirement savings, they are mostly in the stock market. I think it is clear that China will perform quite stably throughout this process." Li Daocui, a professor at Tsinghua University in China, said that China is unlikely to back down. He said, "Firstly, people here say that Trump is crazy. Secondly, he has cornered China. Thirdly, people expect stimulus policies to arrive soon." He said, "Trump understands America, but he needs to understand China... China is not a small country without historical roots. We will retaliate." Others warned that the trade war will push China further on the path toward technological dominance. Economist Jin Kehu stated, "Just as the 'China shock' forced the U.S. to exit low-end manufacturing, the 'Trump shock' is pushing China to reallocate resources toward higher-value advanced technologies directly competing with the U.S." (Translated by Hu Wei) Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7493776616301183514/ Disclaimer: This article represents the author's views. Please express your attitude by clicking the 'like/dislike' buttons below.