China is moving to slap tariffs of 5% to 10% on $75 billion worth of products from the United States, including soybeans and crude oil, the Chinese State Council said Friday.
The announcement comes after the Trump administration said it planned to impose 10% tariffs on $300 billion in Chinese goods.
China is also planning a 25% tariff on U.S. automobiles and a 5% tariff on auto parts and components, the Council said.
The tariffs will go into effect September 1 and December 15 to match the timing of U.S. tariffs.
“In response to the measures by the U.S., China was forced to take countermeasures,” the State Council stated. “The Chinese side hopes that the U.S. will continue to follow the consensus of the Osaka meeting, return to the correct track of consultation and resolve differences, and work hard with China to the goal of ending economic and trade frictions.”
The Chinese tariffs on the U.S. auto industry had previously been put on hold.
U.S. financial markets responded negatively to the tit-for-tat announcements.
The Dow was down 460 points, the S&P 54 points, and the NASDAQ more than 170 points in midday trading.
Meanwhile President Donald Trump, in a series of tweets, said U.S. companies should seek alternatives to producing goods in China.
The U.S. and China reached a tentative truce in the trade war last month at the summit of the G-20 in Japan, but the Trump administration’s trade adviser, Peter Navarro, has said important issues remain to be settled, including industrial espionage, cybersecurity, and currency manipulation.
Talks between the U.S. and China are scheduled for next month in Washington D.C.
Photo by TPG/Getty Images