TAIPEI, Taiwan – China imposed counter tariffs against multiple U.S. products on Tuesday, while also launching an investigation into Google, part of a flurry of punitive action against the U.S. unveiled as its tariffs on China came into effect.
A 10% tariff that U.S. President Donald Trump ordered on Chinese goods went into effect Tuesday, although Trump said he would talk with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the next few days.
China’s finance ministry said it was imposing additional tariffs of 15% on coal and liquified natural gas imports from the U.S. and 10% higher duties on American crude oil, farm equipment and certain cars, from Feb. 10.
“The U.S.’s unilateral tariff increase seriously violates the rules of the World Trade Organization … It is not only unhelpful in solving its own problems, but also damages normal economic and trade cooperation between China and the U.S.,” the ministry said in a statement.
“The additional tariffs will apply to U.S.-origin goods listed in the appendices, on top of the existing tariff rates. Current bonded and duty exemption policies will remain unchanged, and the newly imposed tariffs will not be eligible for exemptions,” the ministry added.
In a separate statement, the Chinese commerce ministry and customs officials announced export controls on a range of items related to certain critical minerals, including tungsten, tellurium, ruthenium, molybdenum and ruthenium.
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation also said that it was investigating the U.S. company Alphabet’s Google on suspicion of violating antitrust laws.
Trump signed an executive order on Feb. 1, imposing the tariff on goods from China, accusing it of not doing enough to combat the smuggling of the synthetic opioid fentanyl into the U.S., while criticizing China’s high trade surplus with the U.S.
At that time, China denounced the action, vowing to file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization, or WTO.
“There are no winners in trade wars or tariff wars. The U.S.’s unilateral tariff hikes seriously violate WTO rules, fail to solve its own problems, and harm both sides as well as the global economy,” the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
The foreign ministry added fentanyl was “a U.S. problem,” saying that at the request of the United States, China was the first country in the world to officially regulate all fentanyl-related substances in 2019.
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Pause tariffs on Canada, Mexico
Besides China, Trump originally imposed a 25% additional tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico over fentanyl smuggling and what Trump says is their failure to stop the flow of cross-border migrants.
But Trump agreed on Monday to pause the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for a month as the two countries unveiled new plans to fend off drug trafficking on their borders with the U.S.
After a call with Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote on social media that Canada would implement a C$1.3 billion (US$893 million) border plan, including reinforcing it with new helicopters, technology and personnel to stop the flow of fentanyl.
Trudeau added that nearly 10,000 front-line personnel will work on protecting the border and that Canada will appoint a “Fentanyl Czar,” list cartels as terrorists, ensure “24/7 eyes” on the border and launch a Canada-U.S. Joint Strike Force to combat organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering.
“Canada has agreed to ensure we have a secure Northern Border, and to finally end the deadly scourge of drugs like Fentanyl that have been pouring into our Country, killing hundreds of thousands of Americans, while destroying their families and communities all across our Country,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Separately, Trump announced that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to immediately deploy 10,000 soldiers to the border to stop the flow of fentanyl and illegal migrants into the U.S.
Trump added that U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, will engage in negotiations with high-level Mexican representatives.
“I look forward to participating in those negotiations, with President Sheinbaum, as we attempt to achieve a ‘deal’ between our two countries,” the U.S. president said.
Edited by Mike Firn.
Alan Lu in Taipei contributed to this report.