Xi says China ‘not afraid’ as Beijing raises tariffs on US goods to 125% in latest escalation of trade war by Nectar Gan
China on Friday, retaliated against U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs by raising its levies on U.S. goods to 125% from 84%, the Chinese finance ministry said.
“Even if the U.S. continues to impose higher tariffs, it will no longer make economic sense and will become a joke in the history of world economy,” the ministry said in a statement, according to a CNBC translation.
“With tariff rates at the current level, there is no longer a market for U.S. goods imported into China,” the statement noted, adding that “if the U.S. government continues to increase tariffs on China, Beijing will ignore.”
The Trump administration confirmed to CNBC on Thursday that the U.S. tariff rate on Chinese imports now effectively totals 145%. Trump’s latest executive order boosted reciprocal tariffs on Beijing to 125%, stacked on top of a combined 20% fentanyl-related tariff imposed in February and March.
“This is the end of the escalation in terms of bilateral tariff rates. Both China and the US have sent clear messages, there is no point of raising tariffs further,” said Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.
The next step would be to evaluate the damage to economic activities in the U.S. and China, Zhang said, adding that there is no sign that the two governments would start negotiations and avoid major disruption in the global supply chains.
Unlike the previous rounds of retaliatory measures, Beijing has refrained from announcing further export control measures or widening its so-called “unreliable entity list” with the addition of more American firms, which would subject them to further restrictions while operating in China. To read more, go to the link below:
