US-China trade war: more tariffs will hurt both countries, WTO official says

The international trade order will be damaged, and both the United States and China will suffer if Washington imposes further tariffs on Chinese goods, according to a World Trade Organisation official, who said the body had a vital role to play in resolving the conflict. Speaking at an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) panel discussion in Papua New Guinea on Friday, China’s Yi Xiaozhun, one of the WTO’s four deputy director generals, said the threat of an escalation in the hostilities was “worrying everyone”. He was referring to comments made by US President Donald Trump in September that Washington was considering imposing trade tariffs on the US$267 billion of Chinese imports not subject to the duties. Read more here