Trade war with China would ‘kill a lot of jobs’ in US, says Alibaba co-founder

Trade tensions have been rising between the world’s two largest economies, as US President Donald Trump seeks to reduce trade deficit with China

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An American cargo ship is seen at the Yangshan Deep Water Port in Shanghai on April 9, 2018. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:31am, 1 May 2018Updated: 11:47pm, 1 May 2018

A trade war between the US and China would destroy jobs in America at a time when Chinese consumers are looking to buy goods from the country, according to Alibaba Group vice-chairman and co-founder Joseph Tsai.

Trade conflict would come at an “ironic time”, given demand for goods and services from the growing number of Chinese consumers, Tsai said in interviews with CNBC and Bloomberg Television at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California.

“This will actually kill a lot of jobs in America if there’s a trade war because the tit-for-tat trade tactics really will cause a retaliation,” he told Bloomberg.

“If because of the trade war they put the gates down, because of retaliation, this is going to hurt everybody and it’s going to close off a lot of opportunities for producers in the United States.”

Trade tensions have been rising between the world’s two largest economies, as US President Donald Trump sought to reduce the country’s trade deficit with China.

The US slapped tariffs on steel imports and China retaliated with duties on imports including soybeans.

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