Trump tariffs dwell: China pronounces contemporary 84% levy on US items in newest commerce battle escalation
China says it will impose 84 per cent tariffs on US goods from tomorrow, up from the 34 per cent previously announced.
Beijing told the World Trade Organization on Wednesday that the situation had “dangerously escalated” and expressed “grave concern and firm opposition to this reckless move” by the US.
The Chinese government had reacted with shock after the Trump administration branded its workers “peasants” and slapped the country with an eye-watering 104 per cent tariff on almost all imports.
US president Donald Trump’s full list of “reciprocal” tariffs has now come into effect, causing Asian markets to tumble on Wednesday as even the US’s closest allies in the region were hit with hefty new duties.
JD Vance made the insulting “peasants” remark in an interview on Fox News last week, in which he complained that America “borrow[s] money from Chinese peasants to buy the things those Chinese peasants manufacture”.
A Beijing government spokesperson said it was “surprising and sad to hear the vice president say such ignorant and impolite words”.
The escalating trade war between the world’s two largest economies has shaken global markets, prompting a widespread sell-off and rattling investor confidence.
JD Sports says impact of tariffs remains ‘uncertain’
JD Sports has said it expects trading conditions to be “volatile” throughout the year as the potential impact of changes to tariffs remains “uncertain”.
It came as the high street retail firm reported a slight increase in revenues for the last quarter, driven by its European business.
The company said like-for-like revenues grew 0.3 per cent in the 13 weeks to February 1, with organic revenue growth of 5.6 per cent.
The firm has also laid out plans to open another roughly 150 stores this year, complete around 100 store conversions or renovations, and close around 50 shops, mainly in eastern Europe.
Who will be hit hardest by China-US trade war as president threatens 104% levy?
President Donald Trump has escalated his trade war with China, confirming a staggering 104 per cent tariff on goods imported to the US.
The move will hit US consumers hard, with Chinese imports spread across major industries and supply chains – and Apple’s iPhone in the firing line.
The sky-high tariffs came after China hit back with retaliatory measures of their own in what has become a tit-for-tat levies exchange between the two countries.
Read the full analysis from my colleagues Alicja Hagopian and Millie Cooke here:
Lib Dem leader says Trump is an ‘unreliable ally’
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has criticised US President Donald Trump’s rising trade war with China.
“It’s dreadful from the President of the United States,” Sir Ed said during a local election visit to Gloucester.
“You know, we used to have presidents of all political persuasions who we could rely on. But I’m afraid Donald Trump is an unreliable ally. He’s unreliable when it comes to defence and supporting Ukraine against the awful President Putin.
“Now he’s unreliable on trade and it’s not just with China, it’s with the UK, it’s with our close allies, with Canada.
“I think we’ve got to stand up to him. I think it’s right that Number 10 is trying to talk to the White House.
“But I think they need another strategy at the same time, and that is to be a bit tougher, to work with our European allies, our Commonwealth allies and others to have an economic coalition of the willing to promote free trade.”
FTSE slumps after China announces further tariffs
The FTSE 100 slumped even further around midday on Wednesday after China announced 84 per cent retaliatory trade tariffs on US imports.
London’s blue-chip index fell as far as 3.6 per cent, or 289 points, to 7621, before paring back the losses slightly.
Germany’s Dax was down 3.5 per cent while France’s Cac 40 was down 3.6 per cent shortly after the announcement.
Escalating China-US tariffs ‘a heavy blow to existing economic order’
Up until now, China’s response to Donald Trump’s eye-watering 104 per cent tariffs had been “measured, moderate and commensurate”, said Dylan Loh, author and assistant professor at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.
Loh was speaking to The Independent shortly before China announced it was upping its own counter-tariffs from 34 to 84 per cent on Wednesday afternoon.
Beyond tariffs, China has a number of ways it can respond to Mr Trump, both “economic and non-economic”, he says. “There are still a slew of policy options. China could, for instance, go after services, which is immense. They could expand the lists of critical minerals banned, or target the agricultural industry in the US,” Mr Loh said.
The full impact on global trade will depend on how the tariff war plays out, he says, but “this blow to the existing economic order, which the US underwrote, in terms of trading rules and norms is very heavy”.
“This will weigh heavily on global exporters and American importers. This will dampen economic investments and companies and consumers will pre-emptively tighten their belts.
“China could redouble efforts to spur domestic consumption, he said. “If China can undertake domestic economic/social reforms to truly unlock domestic consumption, they wouldn’t need to export as much as they do today.”
China expresses ‘grave concern’ at World Trade Organisation about ‘reckless’ Trump tariffs
China told the World Trade Organization on Wednesday that the United States’ decision to impose what it has called reciprocal tariffs on Beijing threatens to further destabilise global trade.
“The situation has dangerously escalated. As one of the affected members, China expresses grave concern and firm opposition to this reckless move,” China said in a statement to the WTO on Wednesday that was sent to Reuters by the Chinese mission to the WTO.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of countries took effect on Wednesday, including massive 104% duties on Chinese goods, as the European Union prepared retaliatory measures, escalating a global trade war.
China told a WTO meeting on trade in goods that the reciprocal tariffs violated the organisation’s rules and undermined the multilateral trading system.
“Reciprocal tariff is not – and will never be – a cure for trade imbalances. Instead, they will backfire, harming the U.S. itself,” China’s statement to the WTO said.
Breaking: China to impose additional tariffs of 84 per cent on U.S. goods
China will impose 84 per cent tariffs on U.S. goods from Thursday, up from the 34 per cent previously announced, the finance ministry said on Wednesday.
Germany’s Merz secures coalition deal as Trump tariffs threaten recession
German conservatives under Friedrich Merz agreed a coalition deal with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) on Wednesday, aiming to revive growth in Europe’s largest economy just as a global trade war threatens recession.
The deal caps weeks of haggling between chancellor-in-waiting Merz and the SPD after he topped elections in February but fell well short of a majority, with the far-right Alternative for Germany surging into second place.
Pressure to reach a deal has taken on new urgency as the government will take charge at a time of global turbulence in an escalating trade conflict sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping import tariffs.
The conservative CDU-CSU bloc and the SPD will present their agreement to form a new government at 3:00 p.m. (1300 GMT), the CSU party said.
Merz, who called Trump’s U.S. an unreliable ally, has already vowed to build up defence spending as Europe faces a hostile Russia, and to support businesses struggling with high costs and weak demand.
Watch: Brexit to blame for London’s millionaire exodus, Lisa Nandy says
Chancellor repeats that ‘all options’ remain on the table for British Steel
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has repeated that “all options” remain on the table over the future of British Steel, as fears mount over the company’s plant in Scunthorpe.
“This government recognises the importance of those jobs in Scunthorpe and in the local area, and we’re doing everything we can to preserve those jobs and to support those communities,” she said.
“We’re in conversation both with the owners and with the trade unions to find a deal.”
It comes after Sir Keir Starmer said all options remained on the table amid suggestions the UK could nationalise the company.
British Steel has launched a consultation on the proposed closure of blast furnaces at its Scunthorpe plant and the Government has been talking to the company’s Chinese owner Jingye.
There have been calls for temporary nationalisation amid fears of thousands of job losses.
