US says tariff rate on imports from China could go up to 245% as a result of Beijing’s retaliatory actions

US says tariff rate on imports from China could go up to 245% as a result of Beijing’s retaliatory actions

In what is fast turning out to be a weekly revision of rates, the United States says that China now faces up to a 245% tariff on imports to the US as a result of Beijing’s retaliatory actions, with the new figure being revealed in a White House fact sheet.

The planned hike comes after China ordered its airlines to halt taking further deliveries of Boeing aircraft,in response to the decision by the US to increase the tariff on Chinese goods to 145% earlier this month. United States president Donald Trump has accused China of reneging on the Boeing deal.

UPDATE: The fact sheet mentioning the 245% rate that was posted on April 15, 2025 appears to have been edited to provide further context. It now states that the 245% is made up of a 125% reciprocal tariff, a 20% tariff to address the fentanyl crisis as well as Section 301 tariffs on specific goods of between 7.5% and 100%.

As such, the 245% represents not just new tariffs introduced during United States president Donald Trump’s second term, but also those put in place by the Biden and first Trump administrations. It should also be noted that not all Chinese-made goods entering the US will be taxed at 245%.

US says tariff rate on imports from China could go up to 245% as a result of Beijing’s retaliatory actions

White House fact sheet, April 15, 2025 excerpt. Click to enlarge.

Even as the trade war escalates, with no sign of anyone backing down, Trump has said he is open to a deal, but China needs to make the first step in any negotiation towards that, as indicated in various news reports.

“The ball is in China’s court. China needs to make a deal with us. We don’t have to make a deal with them,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a press briefing, saying Trump had given her that statement directly in an Oval Office meeting to use. “China wants what we have, the American consumer, or to put another way, they need our money,” she added.

On April 2, Trump announced a series of reciprocal tariffs on over 180 countries, including China, which had its tariff initially increased by 34%. By April 9, the rate had climbed to 145%, which was 125% on top of the 20% rate the president had put in place earlier. China then announced retaliatory tariffs on US goods totalling 84%, which included 34% in response to Trump’s reciprocal tariffs and 50% following Trump’s then threat of a further 50%.

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • kaizen on Apr 17, 2025 at 1:54 am

    a stupid trump, as one (US univ) professor put it, ‘i’ll fail him as a student’.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 3
  • paanjang16 on Apr 17, 2025 at 8:25 am

    Waste time going to 200, 400 or 500%. Why not straight go for 1776% for 4700% and settle once and for all. No matter what is the tariff the phone call is not coming.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 1
  • Ben Yap on Apr 17, 2025 at 8:29 am

    all these american officials are quite stupid and making a fool of themselves…. Trump imposed so high tariffs on China making their products too expensive to buy. Imposing anymore tariffs will make no difference as people will not buy. Secondly, if US thinks that they don’t have to talk to China, then stop asking people to come and negotiate with you. China is not interested to negotiate, then let it be. Don’t need to ask people to approach you when in actual fact you want to start the negotiation.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 21 Thumb down 3
  • Kea Was on Apr 17, 2025 at 9:22 am

    Yawn talk talk talk then U-turn turn turn spin spin spin where have he learn all this from?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 1
  • Sohai on Apr 17, 2025 at 11:42 am

    When China retaliate, it won’t be pretty….
    The Chinese people is prepared to suffer and endure, that’s the sentiment I get on the ground with recent visit.
    Can you say the same about the Americans?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 3
    • Trump supporters will as usual blame it on Biden or even Obama. Those dummies can survive on delusion alone.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 2
  • It obvious Dumpy is pandering to his simple followers with “bigger numbers mean US is winning”. Tariffs become useless after certain level because there will be no trade to impose said tariffs on.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 2
  • with trump’s recently barbaric moves, i can only tell those small countries queueing up at the front door to pray hard, they need to realize they are not there to negotiate anything they are there to seek forgiveness.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 2
  • cukaboi on Apr 17, 2025 at 4:56 pm

    BRICS. Boycott America as whole.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 2
  • SibuMan on Apr 20, 2025 at 11:38 pm

    Cantik

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
 

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