China imposed retaliatory tariffs in response to new US levies on Friday, according to newswire reports that followed confusion sown by state media on the timing of the move.
Bloomberg cited a Foreign Ministry spokesperson as saying that the retaliatory measure had gone into effect. China Daily, the state-run English-language newspaper, cited the country’s customs authority as saying China had implemented “additional tariffs on some import products” after the new US levies came into force.
Later, some versions of the China Daily website were amended to say China’s counter-measure would come later.
The new US tariffs target $34billion in imports from China, with a 25 per cent import tax applied on 818 products ranging from water boilers and lathes to industrial robots and electric cars.
Beijing had said it would begin charging a similar tariff on a list that includes soyabeans, seafood and crude oil and on Friday the country’s Ministry of Commerce said on its website that China "has to fight back" immediately after the US tariffs came into effect. China’s customs administration said on Thursday that retaliatory tariffs would take effect immediately.
