China Retaliates with Tariffs on US Goods, Export Controls on Rare Earths
China’s finance ministry announced on Friday in Beijing that it will impose additional tariffs of 34% on all US goods, effective from April 10, in response to the US tariffs on Chinese goods announced by US President Donald Trump on Wednesday. The tariffs will be levied on all US exports, including agricultural products, machinery and electronics.
In addition, the Chinese commerce ministry stated that it will introduce export controls on seven rare earths, including the magnet resonance imaging (MRI) material Gadolinium and the Yttrium used in electronic devices.
As the world’s largest trading nation, China’s annual exports to the world, including the US, amount to over $400 billion, with the US being a significant market. Trump’s global tariffs, which took effect on April 2, have directly impacted the core strategies of Chinese exporters, including the relocation of production overseas and increasing sales to non-US markets.
Earlier, Trump had hinted at offering trade concessions to China if the Chinese government gives the green light for the sale of the short-video app TikTok. The US president said on Thursday that a TikTok sale is “close” and could be considered a deal.
The far-reaching tariffs of the Trump administration could deliver a lasting blow to global demand. China is more vulnerable to the risk of a shrinking global trade due to its economy’s high reliance on a trade surplus of over $1 billion in the past year.