White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says "the ball is in China's court," as the world's two largest economies remain locked in a retaliatory tariff sparring match. The comments come as Beijing reports its economy grew 5.4% year-on-year in the first quarter. Despite beating expectations, China's statistics bureau warns U.S. tariffs could add "pressure" on Chinese trade.
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00:00The world's largest economy is still in a standoff with its closest rival.
00:05U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods remain at 145 percent,
00:10and China's strike back on American goods at 125 percent,
00:15a retaliation match that has sent global markets down.
00:19The White House says that it's up to Beijing to make a move.
00:23The ball is in China's court.
00:25China needs to make a deal with us.
00:28We don't have to make a deal with them.
00:30U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly said
00:33that his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping is great,
00:38suggesting talks are imminent.
00:40Meanwhile, Trump has expanded investigations into potential new tariffs,
00:45now targeting imports of critical minerals, a lot of which comes from China.
00:50Earlier this month, Beijing already limited exports of seven types of rare earth minerals,
00:56penalizing the U.S. for its high tariff rates.
01:00Over in Malaysia, Xi Jinping touched down for his second stop
01:07in a three-country visit to Southeast Asia.
01:10The Chinese leader has already signed dozens of deals with Hanoi to boost cooperation,
01:16and is set to do the same in Kuala Lumpur and Phnom Penh.
01:19Beijing says its economy has grown in the first quarter of the year, beating expectations.
01:26At the same time, it warned that steep U.S. tariffs will add, quote,
01:42certain pressures on China's economy.
01:45On Chinese social media, AI-generated memes mocking the U.S.' goal of reviving domestic manufacturing
01:52have gone viral.
01:54But among Chinese exporters, a more serious tone.
01:58At a trade show at a southern Chinese shipping hub,
02:01firms are hoping the U.S. and China will strike a deal to lower the levies.
02:06As Trump's tariff policy continues to evolve, fears of a global recession run high.
02:23Many watching in anticipation, wary of where the trade battle
02:27between the world's two largest economies could go.
02:30Scott Huang and Joyce Sen for Taiwan Plus.