China hits back at Trump, hikes tariff on US goods to 125 per cent

The trade war between China and the United States is escalating, as China has increased tariffs on US imports to 125 per cent, matching President Donald Trump‘s duties on Chinese goods.

This is in response to Mr Trump’s decision to raise tariffs on Chinese goods to 125 per cent on Wednesday.

Mr Trump had singled out China for an additional tariff increase while announcing a 90-day pause on the reciprocal tariff imposed on several countries, including Nigeria.

The US President increased duties on Chinese goods from 34 per cent to 80 per cent after China retaliated with an equal duty.

Following that, Mr Trump raised the duty to 104 per cent, then 125 per cent on Wednesday, stacked on top of 20 per cent duties Mr Trump already imposed this year, tied to fentanyl trafficking.

The US President repeatedly hiked tariffs as China continued with retaliations.

According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Mr Trump added additional tariffs after Beijing refused to back off on its promise to impose retaliatory tariffs on US goods.

However, China insisted that it would fight the American tariffs with its countermeasures and described Mr Trump as an “economic bully.”

In a statement issued on Friday, the Chinese Ministry of Finance said, “The US imposition of abnormally high tariffs on China seriously violates international and economic trade rules, basic economic laws and common sense and is completely unilateral bullying and coercion.”

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The finance ministry of the world’s second-largest economy and second-biggest provider of US imports said, “The tariffs on China have become a numbers game, which has no practical economic significance and will become a joke in the history of the world economy.

“However, if the US insists on continuing to substantially infringe on China’s interests, China will resolutely counter and fight to the end.”