“The United States will impose 100% tariffs on China, more than the tariffs we currently pay,” President Trump said in a social media post on Friday.
He said the levy would come into effect on November 1, but could come sooner “depending on further actions and changes in China.”
He also said that on November 1, the United States would “impose export controls on all kinds of critical software.”
In a separate post, Trump said he plans to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in South Korea later this month, but “there doesn’t seem to be any reason to do so right now.”
President Trump later told reporters at the White House that the new tariffs were a response to China’s tightening of restrictions on rare earth exports.
He called China’s move “shocking” for the entire world and “very bad.”
Regarding the possibility of a meeting with President Xi, President Trump said that he had not canceled it and said, “I am planning to attend regardless, so I think it will probably be held.”
The two countries previously imposed tariffs of more than 100% on each other after the Trump administration announced tariffs this year. However, the two sides subsequently agreed to significantly reduce the tax rate and suspend 24% of the levy until November 10th.
Observers say that if new US tariffs are implemented, it is inevitable that tensions between the US and China will escalate again.
RHM/