China slams UK–US trade pact, says it targets Chinese goods

China called out the UK and the United States on Monday over their newly signed trade deal, accusing both countries of deliberately designing the pact to edge Chinese goods out of British supply chains. 

The warning, issued by Beijing’s foreign ministry, followed the announcement of the Trump administration’s first formal trade agreement since it rolled out a sweeping plan for “reciprocal tariffs” last month.

The deal, which involves intense security requirements for the UK’s steel and pharmaceutical sectors, is already straining London’s attempts to rebuild relations with Beijing, a goal that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s government had been quietly working toward in recent months.

According to the Financial Times, Beijing responded to questions about the deal by saying, “Co-operation between states should not be conducted against or to the detriment of the interests of third parties.” The message, issued directly by China’s foreign ministry, made it clear who the country thinks the “third party” is.

The US–UK agreement has pushed the UK deeper into the crossfire of two economic powerhouses. And for Beijing, the UK’s choice to accept the deal’s conditions — especially ones tied to supply chain security and ownership of production facilities — looks like a decision to side with Washington.

China sees Trump’s clauses as direct attack

The structure of the trade pact includes sector-specific relief for UK steel and car exports, but only if the UK agrees to Trump’s conditions. That means accepting a baseline 10 percent tariff on British goods stays in place unless London passes a series of security tests.

These tests fall under Section 232 investigations, which are supposed to check whether imported goods threaten US national security. But UK officials confirmed to the Financial Times that Donald Trump himself made it clear that these rules were meant to counter China.

The US president has been using Section 232 as a weapon to pressure other governments. In this case, the UK was offered some relief — but only if it helps block China from global supply routes. That strategy, Beijing believes, is about forcing other countries to adopt Trump’s anti-China stance.

Beijing didn’t wait to go public. Officials warned again that trade agreements should never be used to attack third countries. That warning wasn’t vague. It was a direct reaction to the US–UK deal, which Beijing says threatens its position in British markets.

China counters trade tension with policy and tariff shifts

While China called out the UK–US deal, it also moved fast to adjust its own policy. Officials have already been pushing to strip foreign components out of Chinese supply chains in a broader effort to reduce exposure to outside pressure. That push has only accelerated now that Trump’s tariffs are being tied to bilateral deals.

Still, Beijing is also trying to lower tensions on other fronts. On Monday, the US and China agreed to a 90-day truce in their wider trade war. As part of that deal, Washington dropped tariffs on Chinese imports from 145 percent down to around 40 percent.

If both sides reach a deal to stop the export of fentanyl precursors from China to the US, those tariffs could drop again by up to 20 percentage points, bringing them closer to the levels Trump currently applies to US allies like the UK.

Beijing is also lowering the heat on its end. It announced cuts to its own retaliatory tariffs on US goods, including energy and agricultural products, from 125 percent to just 10 percent. That move is meant to keep lines open — and prevent another escalation — while China figures out how to deal with countries like the UK that appear to be going along with Trump’s terms.

But the fallout in London is already obvious. The UK government, trying to control the damage, said in a statement that the deal was signed “to secure thousands of jobs across key sectors, protect British businesses and lay the groundwork for greater trade in the future.”

The government also claimed that trade and investment with China remain important to the UK, and that Britain is “continuing to engage pragmatically in areas that are rooted in UK and global interests.” Whether Beijing buys that explanation is still unclear. What’s certain is that China now views the UK as another player in Trump’s economic strategy, not a neutral partner.

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