China’s central bank said Wednesday that it would cut interest rates and inject more liquidity into the financial system, seeking to bolster the economy in response to trade tensions with Washington.The measures—Beijing’s first concrete steps since President Trump ratcheted up tariffs on Chinese goods in April—continued the Chinese government’s incremental approach to dealing with economic difficulties.

People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng announced Wednesday that the lending rate to commercial banks would be reduced by 0.25 percentage points to 1.5%. The central bank also reduced the reserve ratio — the amount of money banks must hold in their reserves.

While Japan won’t walk away from its alliance with the United States, the linchpin of the Asian country’s diplomacy and security policies, “it’s also true that the tariffs and uncertainty that Trump has created for Japan is really shaking things up in Tokyo,” Goodman said.

WASHINGTON — Ever since President Trump announced he was slapping hefty tariffs on countries across the globe, he has been predicting they would force trading partners to sign major deals beneficial to the United States.