China is threatening to retaliate against the latest U.S. tariffs President Donald Trump has threatened, according to a release from a government-run media outlet.
“China has to take necessary countermeasures in response to the U.S. announcement of imposing additional 10 percent tariffs on 300 billion U.S. dollars of Chinese imports,” Xinhua News wrote in a two-paragraph story published Thursday, attributing the information to an official with the country’s Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council.
U.S. Trade Representative spokespersons were not available for immediate comment.
The new U.S. tariffs – some of which are slated to be levied on Sept. 1 and some that were delayed until Dec. 15 — fly in the face of agreements reached by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping when the leaders met during trips to Argentina and Japan, Xinhua added.
China, in an earlier reaction to the new U.S. tariffs, revoked a promise to exempt some Chinese importers from tariffs on U.S. soybeans on sales completed After Aug. 3.
There are no details on how China would retaliate, but the country threatened to raise tariffs already in place on $60 billion worth of U.S. products — including farm commodities. That threat came in May when the U.S. first threatened to put a 25% tax on the remaining $300 million worth of Chinese products without a tariff. The U.S. then retreated from that threat, only to follow through earlier this month at a reduced 10% rate.
The list of U.S. farm goods China threatened to retaliate on in May included such commodities as citrus fruit, berries, vegetables and nuts.
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