China hits back with 34% tariff on US goods after Trump's trade salvo
New Delhi, Apr 4, 2025
China hits back at Trump's tariff hike with a 34% duty on all US goods from April 10, escalating tensions as fears of a deepening trade war between the two growing nations
China has announced a fresh 34 per cent tariff on all US goods, effective April 10, in direct retaliation to President Donald Trump’s latest wave of trade duties. The announcement, made by China’s Finance Ministry on Friday, marks a sharp escalation in the ongoing trade standoff between the world’s two largest economies.
In a parallel move, China will also impose export controls on several key medium and heavy rare-earth elements, such as samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium, starting April 4. These rare-earths are crucial to high-tech manufacturing and defense applications.
“The purpose of the Chinese government’s implementation of export controls on relevant items in accordance with the law is to better safeguard national security and interests, and to fulfil international obligations such as non-proliferation,” China’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement.
Beijing also added 11 foreign entities to its "unreliable entity" list, allowing for punitive action against them. The move shows China is ready to use rules and economic measures to push back against US pressure.
China’s State Council Tariff Commission also clarified that shipments already in transit will not be subject to the new tariffs.
“If the goods have been shipped from the place of departure before 12:01 on April 10, 2025, and are imported between 12:01 on April 10, 2025, and 24:00 on May 13, 2025, the additional tariffs prescribed in this announcement will not be levied," it added.
Tensions escalate after Trump’s tariff hike
The move comes just a day after Beijing urged Washington to withdraw its latest tariffs and warned of “countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and interests.”
Earlier this week, Trump announced that Chinese imports would face a 34 per cent tariff, on top of a 20 per cent levy imposed earlier this year, bringing the total hike to 54 per cent. This aligns closely with the 60 per cent tariff he floated during his presidential campaign.
In addition to targeting China, a baseline 10 per cent tariff on nearly all imports, from China and other countries, is set to take effect this Saturday. The higher “reciprocal tariffs” specifically aimed at China will begin April 9.
President Trump also signed an executive order closing the "de minimis" loophole, a rule that allowed low-value packages from China and Hong Kong to enter the US duty-free. This closure is expected to significantly impact e-commerce shipments and small businesses relying on cross-border logistics.
This latest escalation comes as US trade officials re-examine China’s compliance with the 2020 “Phase 1” trade deal. Under the agreement, Beijing had committed to increasing US imports by $200 billion over two years. However, China has consistently fallen short of those targets, blaming the Covid-19 pandemic and global supply chain issues.
Despite heightened tensions, economic ties between the two countries remain deeply entrenched. Chinese customs data reveals that China imported $154 billion worth of US goods in 2017, before the trade war began. That number rose to $164 billion in 2024, showing continued trade even amid policy clashes.
(With agency inputs)
[The Business Standard]
