Asked by reporters whether the US is preparing for a trade war with China, US President Donald Trump responded: “Well, we’re in one now.” Update Oct 15, 10:55pm: This article has been updated to include comments from US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the impact of tariffs on the Bitcoin mining industry. US President Donald Trump has confirmed the US is in an active trade war with China after threatening a 100% tariff on all Chinese imports last week. “Well, we’re in one now,” Trump said after being asked by White House reporters whether the US is preparing for a “sustained trade war with China.” ”If we didn’t have tariffs, we would be exposed as being a nothing, we would have no defense,” Trump explained, calling the tariffs an important measure for America’s national security. Read more
Tensions between the two countries appear to have cooled off on Sunday, as representatives from both sides signal a willingness to negotiate. Trade tensions between the US and China appear to be softening, as representatives from both governments issued statements on Sunday that signaled a willingness to resume trade negotiations, giving analysts hope of a market rebound. In a translated statement, China’s Ministry of Commerce said it is “ready to strengthen dialogue” with other countries on trade and the recently announced rare earth mineral export controls that inflamed trade tensions between the US and China. The spokespeople also said China would “actively consider” provisions in the rare earth export policy to facilitate trade and strengthen supply chains, including “license exemptions.” US President Trump issued this statement on the same day: Read more
Bitcoin plunged to $102,000 in the Binance perpetual futures pair after Trump announced sweeping tariffs on China on Friday, reigniting fears of a broader trade and market sell-off. US President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on China on Friday, sending the price of Bitcoin (BTC) reeling below $110,000 at the time of writing. Trump said the tariffs were in response to China attempting to place export restrictions on rare earth minerals, which are crucial for creating computer chips. Trump wrote on Truth Social: Trump’s first tariff announcements in April sent shockwaves through crypto markets and sparked fears of a recession. Read more
China launched a digital yuan operations center in Shanghai focused on cross-border payments, blockchain services and digital-asset platforms. China’s central bank has opened a new operations center for the digital yuan in Shanghai. The center will oversee platforms for cross-border payments, blockchain services and digital assets as part of the digital yuan’s ongoing development. State-run Xinhua News Agency reported the news on Thursday, citing a statement from the People’s Bank of China. According to Xinhua, the center is designed to promote the digital yuan’s role in global finance. With the launch, officials unveiled a cross-border payments platform, a blockchain service platform and a digital asset platform. Read more
China’s control over crypto liquidity and its buying power gives Beijing unprecedented leverage over the Trump family’s digital fortune. Opinion by: Joshua Chu, co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association China’s control over cryptocurrency liquidity in Hong Kong gives it unprecedented power over the Trump family’s crypto wealth. This leverage lets Beijing influence the family’s financial fate — and potentially US-China relations — through market moves. As Eric Trump visits Hong Kong, this crypto-political nexus signals a new era of global power. Cryptocurrency is no longer seen as just the new financial innovation around the block. Virtual assets have become powerful geopolitical instruments determining the fates of nations. Read more
Beijing’s consideration of a yuan-backed stablecoin could mark a new front in the global financial system, but experts say dollar dominance, liquidity and trust are high hurdles. China appears to be weighing the launch of a yuan-backed stablecoin, with an initial rollout in Hong Kong and Shanghai, a surprising shift after years of cracking down on crypto while promoting its central bank digital currency, the digital yuan. In the latest episode of Byte-Sized Insight, Cointelegraph spoke with two leaders analyzing China’s potential move into stablecoins: Martin Chorzempa, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and Patrick Tan, CEO of blockchain intelligence firm ChainArgos. The news, first reported on Wednesday, highlighted Beijing’s ambitions to strengthen the yuan’s role in international finance. Still, experts say the path forward is anything but certain, especially with the track record of its central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan. Read more