Beijing says US threat to escalate tariffs against China is a ‘mistake on top of a mistake’

• Trump threatens additional 50% tariffs on China over retaliatory levies

South Korea’s government has approved Tuesday 3 June as the date for a snap presidential election, following the removal from office of Yoon Suk Yeol last week over his declaration of martial law.

The move comes after Yoon’s removal after the country’s constitutional court voted unanimously on Friday to uphold parliament’s decision to impeach him over his ill-fated declaration of martial law in December.

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China’s 84% retaliatory tariffs on US goods, announced on Wednesday, are due to come into effect on Thursday

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China and the European Union have exchanged views on strengthening their economic and trade cooperation in response to US tariffs, the Chinese commerce ministry said on Thursday, according to Reuters news agency.

In a video call on Tuesday, China’s commerce minister Wang Wentao discussed with European trade and economic security commissioner Maros Sefcovic the restart of talks on trade relief and to immediately carry out negotiations on electric vehicle price commitments, the Chinese ministry statement said.

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The US could breach the debt ceiling even sooner than predicted without action from Republicans

“Trump backs down on tariffs, again. And it doesn’t look strategic,” a headline blared on Wednesday afternoon.

At the end of trading, equities had recovered a portion of their losses. But plenty of damage had been done. Markets were thrown into turmoil, interest rates jumped and business activity took a hit. Beyond that, the possibility of a recession grew – and the possibility of a default by the US inched up to 6%, according to prediction markets.

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