China has vowed to defend its interest in the face of growing US restrictions on trade although authorities rule out a possibility for a trade war between the two countries.

China�s Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan said Sunday that a recent decision by Washington to increase tariffs on import of steel and aluminum would not force China to retaliate although he insisted that Beijing would do anything it could to ensure its trade interests are protected.

There are no winners in a trade war, and it would bring disaster to our two countries as well as the rest of the world, said Zhong, adding, China does not wish to fight a trade war, nor will China initiate a trade war, but we can handle any challenge and will resolutely defend the interests of our country and our people.

The comments came against the backdrop of previous pledges by Chinese authorities to respond to increasing trade barriers imposed by the US. However, one such a retaliatory move with direct implications has yet to come from Beijing.

Zhong said Washington�s emphasis on its trade deficit with China, which the US uses as a pretext for imposing tariffs, was sometimes exaggerated. He said studies carried out in China showed that the US authorities overstated the deficit by at least 20 percent a year. The Chinese minister blamed the general gap on US policies for controlling the export of certain products to China, adding that if Beijing was allowed to buy more dual use technology such as supercomputers and advanced materials with military applications, the trade imbalance would be barrowed.

Estimates released by Washington last year put the Sino-US trade deficit figure at $375 billion, one of the largest gaps ever recorded.