Tariffs Will Hit World Economy, Beijing Warns US

US trade sanctions will hit the world economy, Beijing warned on Wednesday, after President Donald Trump threatened to impose fresh tariffs on imports from China.

Trump said he was "considering all options", including tariffs and quotas, after he accused China of decimating the American steel and aluminium industries.

Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters that "any sign of unilateralism or protectionism will ... worsen global trade issues and will hurt the recovering momentum of the world economy".

He added that with the sheer volume of trade and integration between the US and Chinese economies, some friction was natural.

However, "China always regards the US as an important cooperation partner in trade and economy, and we hope we will continue to open our respective markets wider", he said.

"We should see these differences in a reasonable and objective manner and properly handle and manage them through dialogue and consultation following the principle of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit," said Geng.

The Trump administration has two months to decide whether to take action on Chinese aluminium, steel and intellectual property practices. (AFP, AP)