China Now Blinking in Tariff Battle As Angry Chinese Workers Protest Unpaid Wages, Layoffs

I've said in the past that when it comes to the tariff battle with China, China isn't in the same position as the U.S. They are much more reliant on us, and it would put them over a barrel more.

As "Shark Tank's" Kevin O'Leary explained, China doesn't want to be playing games: "Xi can only stay Supreme Leader if people are employed."

"Xi can only stay the Supreme Leader if people are employed."

"America is the #1 economy on earth with all the cards. We will not have that forever. It's time to squeeze Chinese heads into the wall."

Kevin O'Leary calls for 400% tariffs on China. pic.twitter.com/8bDrttjsBw
— Thomas Hern (@ThomasMHern) April 9, 2025

That's an important observation, something most media didn't seem to understand as they attacked President Donald Trump over tariffs.

The Chinese people know they have an authoritarian government. Protests are rarely reported, so when you see them, you know people have been pushed to the wall, knowing they can face serious consequences. It shows you how serious the situation is. Protests are now spreading across the country.

Worker protests over unpaid wages are increasing throughout China, reflecting a surge in dissatisfaction among millions impacted by factory closures due to hefty US tariffs on Chinese imports amidst an economic slump, as reported by Radio Free Asia (RFA).
From Dao county in Hunan province to Suining city in Sichuan and Tongliao city in Inner Mongolia, numerous frustrated workers have taken to the streets to voice their grievances about overdue wages and to contest unfair layoffs at factories forced to shut down due to US tariffs.

Outside a LED light manufacturing plant near Shanghai, thousands of unpaid workers shouted furiously at company managers over wages that haven’t been paid since January.
In central China’s Dao County, a similar scene unfolded outside a sporting goods store after the company abruptly shut down last week without paying employees.
In the northeast city of Tongliao, construction workers climbed onto rooftops and threatened to jump if their wages were not paid.

That's happening because export orders are being canceled. American companies don't want to deal with the tariffs, so they're not ordering from Chinese factories.

Goldman Sachs is estimating China could lose up to 16 million jobs. That's a lot of angry people, and China was already in economic difficulty.

What that means is China is going to have to come to the table. It sounds like they're already getting the message. Now, they're saying they see no harm in trade talks with the U.S.

🚨 China state media saying “no harm” in holding talks with the US as workers begin protests for back pay

🚨 EU prepared to make offer to US that would knock down non tariff barriers and increase investment in the US pic.twitter.com/rSVZyKC8ep
— The Reckoning 💥 (@sethjlevy) May 1, 2025

They're also trying to quietly exempt some of the critical things they need from the U.S. from the tariffs.

On top of what we already reported:

Chinese officials are quietly drawing up a "whitelist" of critical U.S. goods that importers rely on to exempt them from Beijing's retaliatory tariffs, Reuters reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.

So frankly, it sounds like Trump has painted them into a corner, and we'll be hearing more about talks and potential deals soon if China doesn't want to continue down this path.

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