Trump threatens 10% tariff on China and considers EU levy
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Yuan and Chinese stocks fall despite suggestion of lower tariff than president mentioned during campaign. Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 10% tariff on Chinese-made goods arriving in the US from as early as 1 February, adding that he was also considering levies on imports from the EU.
Ordering an investigation into US-China trade on his second day in office, Trump said any penalties on Chinese goods would be “based on the fact that they’re sending fentanyl to Mexico and Canada”. “Other countries are big abusers also, you know it’s not just China,” Trump said during an event at the White House on Tuesday, adding that he was also looking at trade with the EU.
“We have a $350bn deficit with the European Union. They treat us very, very badly, so they’re going to be in for tariffs,” he said. The warning came a day after the new US president told reporters he was thinking about introducing 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, the US’s largest trading partners, from February.
Trump made threats to impose punitive tariffs on several countries during the election campaign, initially warning China that he would introduce a 60% tariff on its imports. Despite Trump’s suggestion of a lower 10% tariff, China’s currency and stock markets moved lower during trading on Wednesday.
