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China said it would increase additional tariffs on US goods to at least 125 per cent, in the latest escalation of the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.
China’s finance ministry said the increase from current additional levels of 84 per cent would take effect from April 12.
But it added that it would ignore any further US tariff rises on Chinese exports, “given that at the current tariff level, there is no market acceptance for US goods exported to China”.
“The US’s imposition of abnormally high tariffs on China seriously violates international economic and trade rules, basic economic laws and common sense, and is completely a unilateral bullying and coercion,” the finance ministry said.
The move is the latest in a weeklong tit-for-tat between the world’s two biggest economies that has seen US President Donald Trump’s administration isolate China after pausing tariffs on other trading partners.
It comes alongside a mounting wave of shipping disruption that threatens to break down international trade between the countries, with cancellations of shipments threatening transpacific voyages.
The chaotic rollout of Trump’s aggressive tariff agenda has convulsed markets since his so-called “liberation day” announcement on April 2, wiping trillions of dollars from global stock indices and sending bond yields soaring.
Earlier this week, the US announced a 90-day reprieve for dozens of countries from his “reciprocal” levies announced at that time, prompting a recovery in market prices, though China was excluded.
Last week, Donald Trump introduced additional tariffs on China of 34 per cent last week, which added to two previous increases of 10 per cent and existing levies that varied across goods. After successive responses from Beijing, he increased them to 84 per cent, and then 125 per cent.
China’s additional tariffs on Beijing were similarly ramped up, with estimates that the total rate on US imports was already over 100 per cent before today’s increase.