Apple CEO Tim Cook attends the China Development Forum in Beijing, China March 23, 2019. Reuters-Yonhap

China doubled down on efforts for global cooperation to maintain the operation of international supply chains hours after U.S. president-elect Donald Trump pushed his "America First" agenda by upping his tariff threats against Chinese imports.

On the opening day of the China International Supply Chain Expo in Beijing, China's Vice-President Han Zheng said that Beijing was willing to work with other countries to advocate an equal and orderly world multipolarity and promote the construction of an open world economic system.

"The world has entered a new period of turmoil and change, and the fragmentation of the world economy has intensified," he said in a keynote speech.

Han encouraged business leaders to build consensus and strengthen links to contribute to maintaining the stability of the global supply chains, while also "injecting more certainty and positive energy" into the recovery of the global economy.

China is the world's top merchandise exporter with massive manufacturing capability, accounting for around 15 percent of the global trade volume.

As the world's second- largest consumer market, it also draws huge investment from major multinational companies.

But on Monday, Trump threatened to add further disruptions to the global supply chains after saying he would impose new tariffs on goods from China using an executive order on the first day of his new administration, which is set to start on January 20.

In a series of posts on his media platform Truth Social, Trump said he would add another 10 percent tariff to all imported goods from China on top of the tariffs already in place, a legacy of the U.S.-China trade war that started during his first term.

A day earlier, Premier Li Qiang had said protectionist tendencies and actions had disrupted global supply chains, and that such behaviors had also escalated costs, reduced efficiency and hindered shared progress.

"We firmly oppose any form of 'decoupling' or creating alternative systems," he told representative of the U.S.-China Business Council and executives of multinational companies, including Apple, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, battery manufacturer CATL, Lenovo, TCL and Yum China ahead of the expo.

China's Vice President Han Zheng speaks during the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations Headquarters in N.Y., Sept. 1, 2023. EPA-Yonhap

"Economic efficiency hinges on the smooth flow of resources. Isolation leads nowhere - openness is the only path forward," he said, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

China is a key part of the global supply chains, but faces the constant threat of U.S.-led decoupling efforts.

In addition to the "small yard, high fence" strategy to curb China's technological progress, Washington is also luring reshoring of high-end manufacturing with the use of automation, artificial intelligence and tax incentives.

While appealing to multinational firms to help defend the stability of global supply chains, Li also signalled intention for further opening-up and widened market access for foreign investors.

"We welcome more foreign companies to come to China to carry out industrial cooperation and continue to provide a broad space for the expansion of global industry and supply chain cooperation," Li added.

The second edition of the supply chain expo, which runs until Sunday, has attracted 620 firms, a third of which are foreign.

It has also drawn the participation of some high-profile business figures, including Apple CEO Tim Cook.

Sean Stein, the incoming president of Washington-based U.S.-China Business Council, said at the expo that companies and global supply chains are facing challenges, while American firms face a twofold threat.

"On the U.S. side, they're encountering an increasingly complex compliance environment, risks of tariff increases, potential removal of permanent normal trade relations, heightened export controls ... and other impediments to continuing to deepen supply chains," he said.

"In China [they] are grappling with economic uncertainty, concerns over competition with state-owned enterprises and private companies and challenges with things like procurement and consumer confidence, which also presents challenges for us."

Read the full story at SCMP.