Former US president Donald Trump – who returns to the White House next month – unleashed a gruelling trade war with China during his first term in office, lambasting alleged intellectual property theft and other “unfair” practices. He has pledged to impose even higher tariffs on China after taking office on January 20, as Beijing is grappling with a shaky post-pandemic economic recovery.

“Tariff wars, trade wars, and technology wars go against historical trends and economic rules, and there will be no winners,” Xi said of China-US relations while meeting several heads of multilateral financial institutions in Beijing, according to state broadcaster CCTV. “China is willing to maintain dialogue with the US government, expand cooperation, manage differences and promote the development of China-US relations in a stable, healthy and sustainable direction,” said Xi.

Beijing is targeting annual growth this year of around five percent, despite sluggish domestic consumption, high unemployment and a prolonged crisis in the vast property sector. Xi also said during Tuesday’s meeting that China had “full confidence” in achieving its 2024 growth goal, state media reported.

His remarks came as official data showed the country’s exports rose last month at a slower rate than expected while imports shrunk further, underscoring the challenges China is still facing. The latest reading reinforced the need for more support a day after top officials pledged to bolster stuttering growth.