According to a statement released this afternoon by the Tariff Commission of the State Council of China, it was announced that tariffs on American goods will be officially raised from the original 84% to a significant 125%, as a countermeasure against the “reciprocal tariff policy” of the Trump administration.
The Tariff Commission of the State Council of China accused the United States of imposing excessively high tariffs on China, which seriously violates international trade rules, as well as basic economic principles and common sense, constituting unilateral bullying and coercion. Furthermore, China emphasized in the statement:
“In light of the current tariff levels, American products exported to China have no market acceptance possibility. If the U.S. continues to impose tariffs on Chinese goods, China will not respond.”
Currently, the overall tariff rate imposed by the United States on Chinese goods has reached 145%. This includes the executive order recently signed by Trump, raising the “reciprocal tariff” to 125%, in addition to the 20% extra tariffs on fentanyl-related products imposed in February and March.
Despite the escalation of mutual tariffs, the Ministry of Commerce of China stated in another announcement on Friday that China is still willing to engage in dialogue with the U.S. “on an equal basis.”
Amid the escalating trade tensions, Goldman Sachs announced on Thursday that it has revised down China’s GDP growth forecast for 2025 to 4%, citing the drag from the U.S.-China trade confrontation and the global economic slowdown.
Although China’s exports to the U.S. account for only about 3 percentage points of its GDP, Goldman Sachs analysts pointed out that the impact of the trade war on employment in China remains significant, estimating that between 10 to 20 million workers are engaged in industries related to exports to the U.S.
