China ‘counterattack’ expected after United States tariffs take effect

Today’s tariffs could just be the opening skirmishes in the trade war, as US President Donald Trump has vowed to hit as much as US$450 billion in Chinese goods, the vast majority of imports.

The lists of goods to be hit by tariffs have been updated several times by both administrations. China still has outstanding sales of about 771,000 tons of USA soybeans in the 2017-2018 marketing year and 1.39 million tons in the following season, USDA records show.

About 800 Chinese products, from boilers to industrial robots and cars, will have a 25% tariff imposed when imported into the US.

USA tariffs on $34bn (£25.7bn) of Chinese goods came into effect on Friday.

Friday’s development comes as Europe, Mexico and Canada – some of America’s closest allies — are engaged in their own trade battles with the U.S.

Ironically, Cohen says the victims of Chinese IP or intellectual property theft won’t benefit from the tariffs. Trump’s attempt to use the steel and aluminum tariffs to pry concessions from the Mexicans and Canadians proved futile.

Last midnight saw the first wave of tariffs take effect.

The Asian giant is already expected to cancel American soybean imports due to the 25% tariff on the legume and, according to Bloomberg, has already purchased 19 cargoes from Brazil. No exact date was given.

The bank estimates that every $US100b of imports affected by the tariffs represents about 0.5 percent of global trade and 0.1 percent of global GDP.

Growing trade tension worries some top officials of the USA central bank.

“U.S. measures are essentially attacking global supply and value chains”.

Beijing had earlier released a target list of $34bn worth of imported United States goods including autos and agricultural products also faced 25 percent tariffs. Americans worry that rising Chinese technological prowess might erode USA industrial leadership and prosperity.

Its 0400 GMT and the US tariffs on China take effect, as confirmed by the US President Trump late-Thursday.

The Chinese government also warned it would react immediately and strongly to new tariffs.

On Thursday, a spokesperson for China’s ministry of commerce said the USA will be “opening fire on the whole world and also opening fire on itself”.

Trump has “ignited the biggest trade war in economic history”, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said. The Hang Seng index also sees a similar turnaround and is up 0.8% as well.

The conflict between the world’s two biggest economies reflects chronic tension in their relationship as customers, business partners and increasingly as competitors.

The negotiations began in August but have stalled over US demands created to discourage investment in Mexico and to shift auto production back to the United States.

Beijing has announced changes this year including easing limits on foreign ownership in insurance and some other fields.

Beijing has said it will not “fire the first shot” in a trade war with the United States, but has made clear that Chinese tariffs on American goods would take effect immediately after U.S. duties on Chinese goods are put in place.

In April, the White House instructed the United States Trade Representative to consider $100 billion in additional tariffs against China.

Current prevailing thought that if the tariffs go no further at this point then there will be only limited damage to the USA and world economies and that the markets can absorb what’s been done up to this point with minor corrections.

“President Trump has really left no exit ramps here”, Gold told CNBC, adding, “We’re in a downward spiral”.

“This is a potential concern for the outlook of corporate investment and consumption around world”, Hui said.

“The Trump administration is behaving like a gang of hoodlums with its shakedown of other countries, particularly China”, said an English-language article in the China Daily.

Economists say that if the back-and-forth stops there, the overall impact on both economies will be minimal even though some industries will suffer. “I think products made in China are the best”, said one shopper in a Beijing grocery story, who gave his name as Yang.

The riskiest economic gamble of Trump’s presidency could spread as it enters a new and unsafe phase by imposing direct costs on companies and consumers globally. But the thing is some say the trade war started this morning, and in a war, it’s not always calm or controllable or rational. Companies want fairer treatment but will be hurt by U.S.