US President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will impose additional tariffs of 50% on China in response to China’s reaction to the US import tariffs. On his platform Truth Social, he wrote: “Yesterday, China imposed retaliatory tariffs of 34%, in addition to its already record-breaking tariffs, non-monetary tariffs, illegal subsidies for companies and massive long-term currency manipulation, despite my warning that any country that takes retaliatory measures against the US by imposing additional tariffs will be immediately confronted with new and significantly higher tariffs that go beyond the original tariffs set for our nation.”
He also announced that “if China does not reverse its 34% increase over the long-standing trade abuse by tomorrow, April 8, 2025, the United States will impose additional tariffs of 50% on China, effective from April 9.”
Trump also stated that “all talks with China over the meetings they have requested with us will be broken off.” Talks with other countries that have also requested meetings will be “taken up immediately” Trump said.
China’s Ministry of Finance had announced on Friday that it would impose tariffs of 34% on all US goods, which are set to take effect on April 10. Beijing has also filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO).
China has already described the new US tariffs as “coercion” and argued that they threaten to undermine the stability of the global economic order and escalate trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies.
The spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Lin Jian, condemned the US decision to impose additional tariffs on Chinese exports to the US, which will increase the total tariffs to at least 54%. The escalating trade war has had immediate effects on global financial markets, causing a decline in European, US and Asian stock prices. Economists have expressed concern over the potential for a global recession, with Goldman Sachs increasing the probability of a recession in the US within the next 12 months to 45%. More details to follow.