PARIS, April 7. /TASS/. Washington may increase import duties on goods from China to 104% if Beijing does not drop plans to levy new duties on American goods, AFP news agency reported, citing a source in the White House.
Duties on Chinese imports would reach 104%, if US President Donald Trump makes good on his earlier threat to raise tariffs on China by another 50% in addition to the already agreed duties of 54%. The new increase may be approved on April 9.
At the beginning of the year, the United States and China started on their trade war path, imposing reciprocal duties on each other, with the US tariff on Beijing reaching 20% on March 4. Trump cited the allegedly insufficient efforts of the governments of China, Canada and Mexico to combat the spread of narcotic fentanyl as the reason for the imposition of duties. On April 2, Trump introduced new customs duties on products from 185 countries and territories. He also upped the ante on China, hitting it with an extra 34% tariff, bringing its total number to 54%.
China reacted to the new tariffs tit-for-tat, also imposing new duties of 34% on all US imports. After that, Trump announced his intention to raise duties on goods from China by another 50%.