Beijing announced on Friday it would slap 34% tariffs on all imports from the U.S. beginning next week in response to President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs.
China was among the more than 60 countries the president decided to hit with a so-called reciprocal tariff that was well above the announced 10% baseline tariff. Trump on Wednesday unveiled a 34% duty on all Chinese exports, on top of the 20% tariff hikes the administration has already imposed since January.
Beijing’s 34% retaliatory duty matches the U.S.’ latest tariff maneuver. The tariff is set to kick in April 10, according to a statement from China’s Ministry of Finance.
“The U.S. practice is inconsistent with international trade rules, seriously undermines China's legitimate rights and interests, and is a typical unilateral bullying practice,” the statement reads. “China urges the United States to immediately cancel its unilateral tariff measures and resolve trade differences through consultation in an equal, respectful and mutually beneficial manner.”
China’s customs agency also suspended imports from U.S. sorghum and grain exporter C&D, and three poultry and bonemeal companies. Beijing also challenged the tariffs at the World Trade Organization on Friday.
In a post to Truth Social on Friday, Trump argued that Beijing had "played it wrong" in opting to retaliate.
"THEY PANICKED - THE ONE THING THEY CANNOT AFFORD TO DO!" he added.
In a separate post, Trump also insisted that his tariff policies "will never change," despite plummetting markets and economists citing increased risks of recession.
The U.S. soybean industry would be among the ag sectors hit hardest by the retaliatory duties. China bought more than $15 billion worth of soybeans in 2023. The tit-for-tariff escalations under the first Trump administration saw the U.S. lose ground to Brazil in the Chinese soybean market, and with Brazil set for a record-breaking soybean harvest this season, there is danger of further market erosion.
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American Soybean Association President Caleb Ragland had urged administration officials on Thursday to swiftly negotiate a new “Phase Two” agreement with China and avoid a protracted trade war.
“We are hoping that from obstacles can come opportunity and that the administration will swiftly work with the affected countries to create new market access opportunities for U.S. soy and other U.S. products in these markets so these higher tariffs can be removed. That includes pursuing a Phase 2 Trade Agreement with China,” he said in a statement.
China is also a significant market for U.S. corn, beef, cotton, pork, sorghum and tree nuts.
The move risks reviving a tit-for-tat trade war initiated in the first Trump administration, when the president hiked U.S. trade weighted average duties on China from 3.1% in 2018 to a peak of 21% in 2019, according to analysis from the Peterson Institute for International Economics. China raised duties on U.S. goods from 8% to 21.8%.
Many of those tariffs remained in place under President Joe Biden, and a revived trade war would send tariff rates even higher.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview on Bloomberg that countries that retaliate could see their tariffs increased further.
“If you retaliate, there will be escalation. If you don’t retaliate, this is the high-water mark,” he said.
Retaliation from other trading partners could also be on the horizon, however. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday that the bloc is already preparing countermeasures. While Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled new 25% tariffs on U.S. vehicles in response to U.S. car and truck tariffs that went into effect Thursday.
“There seems to be no order in the disorder. No clear path through the complexity and chaos that is being created,” Von der Leyen said in her address. “The costs of doing business with the United States will drastically increase.”
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