China Hits Back With Extra 15% Tariffs On Imports Of Major US Farm Exports!

China Hits Back With Extra 15% Tariffs 

Chinasaid on Tuesday it willlevyadditional tariffsashighas15% on imports ofmajorU.S. farmgoods, including chicken, pork, soy and beef, andbroadenedcontrols on doing business withAmericanfirms.

The tariffs,which wereannounced by the Commerce Ministry,aretobeeffectivefrom March 10. TheycameafterU.S. President Donald Trumporderedtheraisingoftariffs onChineseimportsto 20% across the board. Thosebecameeffectiveon Tuesday.

Imports ofAmerican-grown chicken, wheat, corn and cotton willbesubjected toanadditional15% tariff, itadded. The tariff on sorghum, soybeans, pork, beef, seafoods,fruits, vegetables and dairy products will beraisedby 10%.

Beijingalsoput10additionalU.S.companieson itslist ofunreliableentitieson Tuesday, which wouldexcludethem fromparticipatingin China-related import or exportbusinessand fromestablishingnew investments in the country.

Thefollowingfirmsareincluded:TCOM,Limited Partnership; Stick Rudder Enterprises LLC; Teledyne Brown Engineering; Huntington Ingalls Industries; S3 AeroDefense; Cubic Corporation; TextOre; ACT1 Federal; Exovera and Planate Management Group.

Theinclusionof the 10firmsfollowsChinainMarchaddingtwocompanies, fashionretailerPVH Group andbiotechfirmIllumina, to thelist ofunreliable entities.

In addition, Chinaplaced15Americancompaniesonits export control list, including defense and  aerospacefirmssuchasGeneral Dynamics Land Systems and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, among others.

“China has decided to include 15 U.S. entities that endanger China’s national security and interests in the export control list, prohibiting the export of dual-use items to them,” the ministry said in a statement.

China’s is a major importer of American farm products, though its purchases dipped after Trump launched a trade war during his first term in office, and then recovered.

In 2021-22, the United States logged record export values to China for soybeans, corn, beef, chicken meat, tree nuts, and sorghum. Cotton exports to China also rebounded, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. farm exports to China totaled $33.8 billion in fiscal 2023 and $36.4 billion in fiscal 2022.

But China has been diversifying its sources for farm imports, buying more soybeans from Brazil and Argentina, among other growers.

The Commerce Ministry included about two dozen U.S. farm exports subject to additional 15% tariffs, including chicken feet and wings, and 711 items subject to an extra 10% tariff.