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Gloomy Stock Market Faces New China Taunt: We’ll Get ‘Last Laugh’

Last Updated March 4, 2021 2:39 PM
Ian Bezek
Last Updated March 4, 2021 2:39 PM

By CCN.com: China and the United States keep upping the ante. Presidents Trump and Xi are raising the stakes even further this weekend after a traumatic Friday for the stock market.

On Friday, China announced $75 billion in additional tariffs on American goods. Trump reacted by calling Xi an “enemy” and announcing further tariff increases of his own. He also ordered American companies to relocate their operations outside of China.

As a result, the Dow plunged 623 points. And it could get even worse next week. Late Friday evening, Trump again took to Twitter, this time threatening to invoke a national emergency to crack down on China:

China Strikes Back, Says Beijing Will Get ‘Last Laugh’

China isn’t taking all this provocation lying down. On Saturday, a pseudonymous opinion piece  in a leading state-run Chinese paper stated that:

“China’s will to defend the core interests of the country and the fundamental interests of the people is indestructible, and will not fear any challenge.”

The author continued saying that China would continue to fight for its interests until the end and that:

“History will prove that the side on the path of fairness and justice will have the last laugh.”

On Saturday, the editor of China’s Global Times added more fuel to the fire, saying:

Stock Market Poised to Suffer More Consequences

dow jones industrial average chart
Trade war panic slammed the Dow Jones on Friday. | Source: Yahoo Finance

So far, the trade war has been heavy on rhetoric and lighter on actions. While the tariffs have led to a slowdown in the economies of both China and the U.S., we haven’t seen grave economic effects… yet. However, we could be reaching a point of no return.

Hayden Capital Management’s chief investment officer Kyle Bass, for example, is urging Trump to take the fight to the Chinese banking system:

China would certainly escalate beyond even its latest threats if Trump starts using emergency powers to sanction China’s banks or execute other such far-reaching actions. Not surprisingly, investors are preparing for a bloodbath on Monday.

CNBC’s Jim Cramer, however, notes that even in crisis, there is opportunity:

Will Bitcoin Shine Amid Gloomy Trade War?

While the stock market is on shaky ground, bitcoin could be a big beneficiary.

Historically, Chinese nationals have used crypto  to help avoid that country’s capital controls. With rumors that the Hong Kong dollar is about to devalue as well, crypto looks like an increasingly attractive safe haven as the trade war rhetoric intensifies.

Not all Chinese folks may race to crypto for safe-keeping their money, however. As we reported last week, the U.S. Treasury has blackballed the crypto addresses of alleged Chinese drug kingpins.