synopsis

The world's second-largest economy also cautioned that once international trade returns to the "law of [the] jungle," no one will be immune, and the "strong will prey on the weak."

China issued an ultimatum to its trading partners, who are buckling under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to negotiate bilateral trade deals.

In a  strongly worded statement, a Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said, "China firmly opposes any party to reach a deal at the expense of China's interests."

"If this happens, China will never accept it and will resolutely take countermeasures in a reciprocal manner," the spokesperson said, adding that China is "determined and capable of safeguarding its own rights and interests."

China said it believes all parties should support "fairness and justice"  and "historical correctness" on the issue of "reciprocal tariffs, "even as it respects the resolution of economic and trade differences with the U.S. through equal consultations."

It also called upon countries to defend international economic and trade rules and the multilateral trading system.

The world's second-largest economy cautioned that once international trade returns to the "law of [the] jungle," no one will be immune, and the "strong will prey on the weak."

The Xi Jinping-led country signaled its willingness to strengthen unity and coordination with all countries and work together to "respond, jointly resist unilateral bullying."

China's strong comments come after the U.S. has imposed a staggering 245% tariff on China, although some tech products have been exempted for now.

At the same time, the U.S. has paused "reciprocal tariff" implementation on most other nations to provide time for negotiating bilateral trade deals. A White House statement said last week that more than 75 countries have already reached out to discuss new trade deals.

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance is reportedly visiting India on Monday. He will be in the country for four days following a visit to Italy, purportedly with an eye on negotiating trade terms.

U.S. stock futures are pointing to a negative open on Monday amid the tariff uncertainties, even as key exchange-traded funds (ETFs) ended on a mixed note last week.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) ETF ended Thursday's session up 0.14% at $526.41, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF edged down 0.03% at $444.06.

While the SPY is down about 10% year-to-date, the QQQ has lost a steeper 13%.

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