As Trump softens his tone on the trade war, China refuses to budge

China’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said Thursday that there were no talks taking place with the Trump administration on trade, reiterating that Beijing will not negotiate under U.S. pressure. That was before Beijing responded to Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs by restricting exports of additional rare-earth minerals, where China dominates global supply. AdvertisementBy halting those deliveries, China appeared to be signaling it is willing to take risks to send a message to Trump. “If the tariff war continues, U.S. aircraft exports to China will likely become unsustainable. A move to limit exports by the Trump administration could severely harm Comac’s attempts to scale up manufacturing and take on Boeing and Airbus.