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The former US president’s most recent warning to enforce an additional complete levy on Chinese goods has been described as a “classic case” of American hypocrisy, per the China’s leadership.

A representative of the ministry also stated that the nation could introduce its own unrevealed “retaliatory steps” if the White House occupant executes his warning, adding that the country was “unafraid” of a looming commercial battle.

Last Friday, Trump hit back at Beijing’s move to reinforce its rules for overseas sales of critical elements, alleging Beijing of “turning aggressive” and attempting to hold the international market “under its control”.

Additionally, he threatened to pull out of a planned talks with Beijing’s head of state President Xi, which was expected to take place during a summit in the Republic of Korea in the coming weeks.

His statements on that day unsettled financial markets, with the S&P 500 share index dropping over two and a half percent, marking its largest decline since earlier this year.

These statements renewed concerns of a trade war between the US and China.

Earlier this year, the two sides had reached an agreement to eliminate high import duties on each other’s products, which had created the possibility of trade halting between the two nations.

This left, American import duties on Chinese goods incurring an extra thirty percent tariff compared with the year’s onset, while American products entering China face a 10% tariff.

Beijing’s recent statements – issued by the relevant government department in the form of official answers to journalist’s questions – mirrored terminology from the height of the recent trade conflict.

The remarks condemned United States controls on semiconductors and chips while defending Beijing’s export controls on rare earths as “standard procedures” to protect national security and that of every country.

Their representative stated that for “a long time”, the US had “expanded the interpretation” of domestic safety, misused foreign shipment regulations and “implemented” discriminatory practices against China.

“Resorting to trade levy ultimatums is not the correct approach to engage with China,” their representative said.

“China’s position on a import duty dispute has remained unchanging: we do not want one, but we are unafraid of one.”

Recently, China declared it was reinforcing foreign shipment restrictions on key elements and further resources vital for cutting-edge industry.

This was seen as a significant step, as the country refines about 90% of the world’s rare earths, which are employed in items such as renewable energy components and mobile phones.

New remarks from Washington and Beijing are being viewed by some as a method of strengthening positions in preparation for forthcoming discussions.

It is unclear whether a meeting between the former president and China’s leader, planned at a summit in the Republic of Korea later this month, will still proceed.