China announced Friday that it will retaliate against the Trump administration’s latest tariffs with duties on $75 billion worth of U.S. goods.
Tariffs of between 5 and 10 percent will be imposed on September 1 and December 15, the same dates the U.S. plans to impose a 10 percent tariff on $300 billion worth of Chinese goods, the State Council’s Customs Tariff Commission said, according to state media.
The tariffs also include a 25 percent duty on American automobiles beginning in December.
“In response to the measures by the US, China was forced to take countermeasures,” the Council said. “The Chinese side hopes that the US will continue to follow the consensus of the Osaka meeting, return to the correct track of consultation and resolve differences, and work hard with China to end the goal of ending economic and trade frictions.”
“We hope the United States will meet China halfway,” a foreign ministry spokesman said Wednesday, saying China hopes for “a resolution that is acceptable to both sides on the basis of mutual respect and equal treatment.
Earlier this week, President Trump defended his controversial trade policies, which have particularly hurt U.S. farmers, saying the issues with China should have been addressed before his administration.
“Somebody said this is Trump’s trade war. It’s not my trade war. This is a trade war that should have taken place a long time ago by a lot of other presidents,” Trump said.
Washington in May upped tariffs from 10 percent to 25 percent on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports, claiming Beijing had reneged on the previously agreed terms of a trade deal. The U.S. also has a 25 percent tariff on $50 billion worth of Chinese high-tech products. In response, China has imposed 25 percent tariffs on tens of billions in U.S. goods.
The world’s second largest economy warned earlier this week of retaliatory moves to the hardline U.S. position on trade.
“Despite the U.S. decision to delay tariffs on some Chinese goods [until December] … if the United States rides roughshod over China’s opposition and imposes any new tariffs, China will be forced to adopt retaliatory actions,” Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng said Thursday.