Minister assesses trade motives of China, US

China has no intention to start a trade war with the United States and will not initiate one, but the country can cope with any challenge and will defend its national interests, China's top commerce official said on Sunday.

Trade wars can result in no winners, but only disasters for the two countries and the rest of the world, Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan said at a news conference during the ongoing 13th National People's Congress.

On Thursday, the US government imposed a 25 percent tariff on steel imports and 10 percent on aluminum from countries including China, Brazil and Australia, with initial exemptions for Canada and Mexico.