Beijing: China has threatened to retaliate if the United States goes ahead and raises tariffs on $300 billion worth of Chinese imports. Beijing will adopt “the necessary countermeasures” to the new tariffs, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.
The US’ move to impose 10-per cent tariffs on $300 billion worth of Chinese goods violates agreements reached by the countries’ leaders at G20 summits in Argentina and Japan over the past year, the ministry said.
The new tariffs were initially set to take effect on September 1, but Washington this week decided to remove some items from the tariff list and postpone the enactment of some duties until December 1 to help Christmas shopping.
A Chinese trade delegation is set to travel to Washington next month.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday added a new dimension to the talks, suggesting he could meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss widespread protests in Hong Kong, a Chinese semi-autonomous territory.
The US and China have been caught up in a yearlong trade war that is slowing the world economy. — dpa
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