US-China trade could decrease by as much as 80%, WTO chief warns

STORY: :: Trade of goods betwixt the U.S. and China could autumn by up to 80%, the World Trade Organization warns

:: April 10, 2025

:: Geneva, Switzerland

:: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director General

"The escalating commercialized tensions betwixt the United States and China airs a important hazard of a crisp contraction successful their bilateral trade. A preliminary projection suggests that merchandise commercialized betwixt these 2 economies could alteration by arsenic overmuch arsenic 80 percent. Further escalation becomes tantamount to a shortening of bilateral commercialized betwixt the 2 countries, a decoupling. The antagonistic macroeconomic effects volition not beryllium confined to the U.S. and China alone, but volition widen to different countries, particularly the slightest developed nations. Of peculiar interest is the imaginable fragmentation of planetary commercialized on geopolitical lines. A part of the planetary system into 2 blocks could pb to semipermanent simplification successful planetary existent GDP by astir 7 percent."

WTO's preliminary estimation was issued connected Wednesday (April 9) astir the clip U.S. President Donald Trump further raised tariffs connected imports from China but paused immoderate others for 90 days.

China's ngo to the World Trade Organisation said connected Friday (April 11) it had filed an further ailment to the commercialized assemblage implicit U.S. tariffs.