Beijing announced Friday that China's surplus with the US hit an all-time high of $28.97 billion (€24.85 billion) in June, with exports reaching a record $42.62 billion.

The news came as the two economic superpowers stand on the brink of an all-out trade war that would have a huge negative impact globally.

China's trade imbalance is at the heart of US President Donald Trump's anger at what he describes as Beijing's unfair trade practices that are hurting American companies and destroying jobs.

But in a statement coming from the Chinese Commerce Ministry, The Asian nation said the surplus was overestimated and caused by America's own "domestic structural problems."

Tit for tat

The spiraling battle between Beijing and Washington shows no signs of cooling down. China said the two sides were not discussing restarting trade negotiations. The government in Beijing pledged it would strike back against Washington's latest threat.

Donald Trump had recently upped the ante by threatening higher tariffs on a colossal $200 billion of Chinese imports.

"Looking ahead, export growth will cool in the coming months as US tariffs start to bite alongside a broader softening in global demand," Capital Economics analyst Julian Evans-Pritchard said in a statement.

Economists are also certain that China will back away from its crack down on debt and roll out monetary policy easing measures in dealing with the trade conflict.

hg/jd (AFP, Reuters)