President Donald Trump announced an additional 10% tariff on goods from China, along with the tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico he previously announced.
Trump had announced the tariffs on Truth Social on Thursday, saying “We cannot allow this scourge to continue to harm the USA, and therefore, until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled,” referring to his unverified claims that illegal drugs have been pouring into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico.
READ: The perils of Trump’s proposed tariff trade war (February 6, 2025)
The president also announced 10% additional tariffs on China, which already faces 10% tariffs from the U.S. A White House official confirmed to CNBC later on Thursday morning that the new duties on Beijing mean the U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports will total 20%.
On Friday, China’s Ministry of Commerce stated it “firmly opposed” to Trump’s tariff threats, and it would retaliate if necessary. “If the U.S. insists on its own way, China will take all necessary countermeasures to defend its legitimate rights and interests,” a Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said in a statement. “We urge the U.S. side to not repeat its own mistakes, and to return as soon as possible to the right track of properly resolving conflicts through dialogue on equal footing.”
READ: Canada, China, Mexico, South Korea, India among 10 countries to be hit by Trump’s tariffs on aluminum, steel (February 11, 2025)
Neil Thomas, a fellow on Chinese politics at the Asia Society told CNBC his predictions: “In the short term, China’s response will likely include raising tariffs on select U.S. imports, adding more American firms to its unreliable entity list, and potentially further tightening export controls on critical minerals.”
Trump has been talking about tariffs ever since he took office for his second term. He mentioned imposing significant tariffs on the semiconductor and auto industries previously.