US-China Trade War Intensifies with Tit-for-Tat Tariffs and Blacklists

CHINA – China has hit back at new US tariffs with sweeping levies of its own on American products, sharply escalating the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.

China’s finance ministry said on Friday a 34 per cent tariff will be imposed on all US imports from April 10, mirroring President Donald Trump’s levy on Chinese goods that was announced as part of his global tariff blitz on Wednesday.

“China urges the United States to immediately lift its unilateral tariff measures and resolve its trade differences through consultations in an equal, respectful and mutually beneficial manner,” the ministry said in a statement.

The latest Chinese countermeasures also included restrictions on US companies and rare earth exports. China’s commerce ministry said on Friday it is adding 16 US entities to an export control list, banning them from acquiring Chinese products designated as dual-use, for civilian and military purposes.

“These entities have behaved in a manner that may jeopardize China’s national security and interests, and no export operator is allowed to violate the above-mentioned provisions,” it said in a statement.

The commerce ministry put 11 other US companies on a so-called “unreliable entity” list, effectively blacklisting them.

Over in the US, the stock market turmoil deepened as China hit back, raising the likelihood of an extended trade war and damage to the global economy.

All three major stock indexes in the US plunged more than five per cent with the S&P 500 dropping almost six per cent, bringing to an end the worst week for the US stock market since 2020.

In the UK, the FTSE 100 plunged almost five per cent – its steepest fall in five years, while Asian markets also dropped and exchanges in Germany and France faced similar declines.

Trump, who has vowed to remake the global trade order, dismissed concerns about the market shock, noting that the US labour market is strong.

“Hang tough,” he urged his followers on social media. “We can’t lose.”

The global stock market has lost trillions in value since Trump announced sweeping new 10 per cent import taxes on goods from every country, with products from dozens of countries, including key trading partners such as China, the European Union and Vietnam, facing far higher rates.

Analysts say the moves, some of which are due to go into effect as soon as Saturday, amount to the biggest tax increase in the US since 1968. They expect the measures to lead to a contraction in trade, and have warned they could drive many countries into an economic recession. (NPR/BBC)