An Eye For An Eye: Now China threatens US with heavy tariffs intensifying trade war fears

Retaliating to US' hostile trade actions, China issues warning of heavy tariffs on American imports.

Photo: AP/Representational

New Delhi: Retaliating over Trump’s imposition of tariffs on  its goods, China warned US on Friday that it was not afraid of a trade war. China threatened US of imposing strict tariffs on dollar 3 billion worth of US goods. It revealed a list of products that could face duties up to 25 percent. China said it could place tariffs on a range of products from fresh fruits, to wine and pork. It however stopped giving US a chance to negotiate an agreement. Share market plummeted drastically in the apprehension of upcoming trade war. According to the reports, the commerce ministry of China said that though China does not want to fight a trade war, it is absolutely not afraid of one. It issued a series of warning. The first being -15 percent tariff on 120 US goods worth almost dollar 1 billion, including Fresh fruits, nuts and wine, would be imposed if US fails to reach a trade compensation agreement within a stipulated timeframe. The second step would be to impose a 25 percent tariff on eight goods including pork and aluminum scrap totaling nearly $2 billion. If Beijing adds Soybean in the list, it would deal a severe blow to US farmers, as almost a third of their exports go to China. The warning came as a response to US president Donald Trump’s order on Chinese investment in US. Hours earlier Trump, who accused China of theft of intellectual property of the US, had signed order of trade action that restricted Chinese investment in US. As alleged by the White House, China has attained US technologies from companies in unfair ways. It termed it as “forced technology transfer”.  The US Trade Representatives also plan to charge China with preventing US companies from freely licensing their own technology in China Within a period of two weeks, the list of Chinese products that will be hit by the new tariffs is expected to be release. Beijing on the other hand has been repeatedly warning US against Trade War, stating that Trade Wars benefit none. However, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross suggested that the new measures were in fact a way of bringing China to negotiations.