China vows in Politburo meeting to support firms workers affected by tariffs

BEIJING - Chinas top policymakers pledged to support firms and workers most affected by the impact of triple-digit U.S. tariffs and urged the country to prepare for worst-case scenarios, state media reported on Friday.

The ruling Communist Partys Politburo reiterated plans to accelerate debt issuance, ease monetary policy and vowed to support employers to safeguard jobs as China hunkers down for a trade war with the United States.

No announcement of additional deficit spending beyond what was approved in March came out from the readout.

It seems Beijing is not in a rush to launch a large stimulus at this stage. It takes time to monitor and evaluate the timing and the size of the trade shock, said Zhiwei Zhang, chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.

The state media Xinhua report on the Politburos Friday meeting said the policy toolkit must be continuously refined to stabilize employment and the economy, with new measures introduced in a timely manner as circumstances evolve.

The meeting also called for comprehensive planning for worst-case scenarios and concrete steps to bolster the economy, Xinhua said.

The country will increase the proportion of unemployment insurance funds that can be returned to companies greatly affected by tariffs, in a bid to stabilise jobs, according to the readout.

Multiple measures should be taken to help enterprises in difficulty. (We should) strengthen financing support and accelerate the integration of domestic sales and foreign trade, Xinhua reported.

The Politburo meeting emphasized bottom line thinking and adequate policy plans, showing a new round of stimulus may be smaller than expected... the significance given to stabilising jobs is higher than economic stabilisation, said Xing Zhaopeng, senior China strategist at ANZ.

The country will also cut interest rates and banks reserve requirement ratio in a timely manner and develop consumption in the services