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The former US president’s latest ultimatum to introduce an further complete levy on Chinese goods has been described as a “classic case” of American hypocrisy, as stated by the China’s leadership.

A Commerce Ministry spokesperson further commented that the nation could introduce its own unrevealed “countermeasures” if the White House occupant executes his threat, emphasizing that the country was “unafraid” of a possible trade conflict.

On Friday, the former president retaliated at the Chinese government’s action to reinforce its policies for exports of rare earth minerals, charging China of “turning aggressive” and attempting to hold the world “captive”.

He also threatened to pull out of a arranged meeting with Chinese leader President Xi, which was arranged for a conference in South Korea later this month.

Trump’s comments on last Friday shook stock exchanges, with the S&P 500 share index closing down over two and a half percent, marking its largest decline since April.

These statements revived apprehensions of a trade war between the two economic giants.

In May, the two sides had agreed to eliminate high import duties on each other’s imports, which had created the possibility of bilateral trade stopping between the two nations.

This left, United States levies on Chinese imports facing an extra 30% levy compared with the start of the year, while items from the United States entering China are subject to a 10% tariff.

The most recent comments from China – released by the Commerce Ministry in the manner of written responses to media inquiries – echoed terminology from the zenith of the latest commercial tensions.

The remarks condemned US export restrictions on electronic components while justifying China’s own export controls on rare earth minerals as “normal actions” to ensure national security and that of every country.

The official said that for “a long time”, the America had “overstretched the concept of domestic safety, exploited export control measures and “implemented” discriminatory practices against China.

“Resorting to tariff threats is not the correct approach to engage with the Chinese government,” the official commented.

“Beijing’s stance” on a tariff war has consistently been steady: we wish to avoid one, but we are fearless of one.”

Last week, China declared it was strengthening export controls on rare earths and other materials vital for advanced tech manufacturing.

This move was regarded as a significant step, as the nation processes about 90% of the world’s rare earths, which are utilized in items such as photovoltaic modules and handheld devices.

New remarks from both governments are being interpreted by analysts as a strategy of enhancing bargaining power prior to future trade talks.

Is not yet known whether a summit between Donald Trump and President Xi, scheduled at a summit in the Republic of Korea in the coming weeks, will take place as planned.