War on the horizon: America strikes China?

She emphasized that import duties on selected products, in areas where the US wants to attract investment, are a defense of the US plan to prevent another "China shock", reported Bloomberg.

The US agency states that the term refers to "the economic and social chaos that followed China's entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001, which devastated the clothing, electronics, machinery and furniture industries, resulting in the loss of millions of jobs in the United States."

"Regardless of who is in charge in the United States of America, we cannot endure 'China shock 2,'" Tai said.

Still, she cautioned against the use of blanket tariffs like those proposed by Donald Trump, who repeatedly promised during the campaign to impose tariffs of 10 to 20 percent on all foreign goods and additional tariffs of 60 percent or more on products coming from China.

"Tariffs are part of the solution, but just introducing them does not make them effective, you need to have a strategy for what you are trying to achieve, and this is about strengthening the American economy when it comes to 'vital industries' that will be the drivers of growth in the coming years and decades," Tai said.