Waves of voices within US against additional tariffs going higher: China

China on Tuesday urged the United States to properly solve trade disputes through consultations based on the principles of equality and mutual respect.

Foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang made the statement at a regular press conference in Beijing, as a series of public hearings regarding proposed US tariffs on approximately $300 billion worth of Chinese products kicked off in Washington D.C. on Monday.

The hearings, to be held by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) daily for two weeks, will be attended by hundreds of witnesses, most of whom are expected to voice their opposition to the proposed tariffs and explain how trade protectionism would hurt their businesses, industries and consumers.

"I have noticed that, as the hearing for proposed US tariffs on Chinese imports gets underway, the waves of voices within the United States against additional tariffs are going higher and higher. Even (Larry) Kudlow, director of the White House National Economic Council, openly admitted that US businesses and consumers will pay for the new tariffs. In addition, according to a recent report by Goldman Sachs, the costs of the tariffs imposed by the US government completely shifted to American companies and families, and their impact on American commodity prices is greater than previously estimated," said Lu.

Twenty-five per cent tariffs on some 250 billion dollars' worth in goods from China are currently in effect, and have already backfired.

Last week, over 600 US companies and associations sent a letter to the White House, urging it to stop escalating trade tensions with China through tariff hikes.

According to the anti-tariff campaign "Tariffs Hurt the Heartland," the proposed new tariffs, if imposed, would result in the loss of more than 2 million US jobs, add more than 2,000 dollars in costs for an average American family of four, and reduce the value of US gross domestic product by 1 per cent, combined with the impact of previously implemented tariffs and retaliatory measures imposed by the Chinese side.

The spokesman stressed that for a long period of time, trade and investment brought huge benefits to industries and consumers in both the US and China.

"History has proved that the trade disputes between the United States and China can be properly resolved through consultation, as long as the negotiation and dialogue are based on mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit. Any practice against such principles is doomed to fail," he said.