China Hits Back At Trump: Imposes Tariffs on $75 Billion of U.S. Goods
Trade war shows no signs of slowing down after China's announcement
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President Donald Trump's trade war with China has changed up a gear after the country announced it would impose new tariffs on $75 billion of U.S. products.
The new tariffs will range from 5 percent to 10 percent, covering U.S. goods that have not been previously hit with tariffs.
Additionally, China will also move forward with plans to impose tariffs on U.S. vehicles and auto parts.
Retaliation
The new tariffs are an unsurprising response to Trump administration’s decision to impose $300 billion worth of tariffs of Chinese goods.
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The escalating trade conflict began more than a year ago when the U.S. accused Beijing of stealing or pressuring American companies to hand over their technology to their competitors, among other grievances.
In May, Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping had sent him “a very beautiful letter” and that he would probably speak with him on the phone.
Trump has routinely accused China of taking advantage of American trade policies but said a trade pact could be imminent.
The Chinese tariffs will take effect in two waves.
The first on September 1 and the second on December 15.
Our Country has lost, stupidly, Trillions of Dollars with China over many years. They have stolen our Intellectual Property at a rate of Hundreds of Billions of Dollars a year, & they want to continue. I won’t let that happen! We don’t need China and, frankly, would be far....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2019
....better off without them. The vast amounts of money made and stolen by China from the United States, year after year, for decades, will and must STOP. Our great American companies are hereby ordered to immediately start looking for an alternative to China, including bringing..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2019
....your companies HOME and making your products in the USA. I will be responding to China’s Tariffs this afternoon. This is a GREAT opportunity for the United States. Also, I am ordering all carriers, including Fed Ex, Amazon, UPS and the Post Office, to SEARCH FOR & REFUSE,....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2019
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The date matches the same periods the new U.S. tariffs are set to be imposed.
But the announcement seemed to catch Trump administration officials off-guard.
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow spoke positively trade negotiations with China on Thursday, saying he expected further face-to-face talks to be held in Washington, D.C. in September.
Also caught off guard were the financial markets.
Stock futures showed stocks would weaken when markets opened.
Trump seemed to be reacting to the news when he tweeted that the Federal Reserve should “show their stuff.”
The president has been piling on he pressure to get the Fed to cut interest rates by as much as a full percentage point.
Fed officials signaled they might cut rates if trade tensions worsen, which they have.
China imports far less from the U.S than the U.S. does from China.
This means China’s ability to damage the US is limited, at least through tariffs.
