China hits back with 125 per cent tariff at US, says will ignore further retaliation from Trump admin

China slapped fresh tariffs of 125 per cent on the United States (US) on Friday (Apr 11) and said that it would "ignore" further tariff hikes by US President Donald Trump. Amid a tariff war with the US, China said that goods from its largest trading partner would no longer make economic sense for importers. State media also reported that China would file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization over Washington's fresh tariffs.

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Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged the European Union to join Beijing in resisting "unilateral bullying", state media Xinhua reported. The Chinese president stressed that this would not only "safeguard their own legitimate rights and interests, but also... safeguard international fairness and justice." According to Chinese media Xinhua, Jinping also said that there is no winner in a tariff war.

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Donald Trump's tariff war with China

China had a pre-existing 67 per cent tariff on US goods, while the US charged 10 per cent. However, on 'Liberation Day', US President Donald trump announced ‘reciprocal tariffs’ and imposed 104 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods, China hit back with 84 per cent tariff as a retaliatory measure in place of 34 per cent that it had already announced.

On Apr 9, Trump paused tariffs for all countries for 90 days but increased China's tariff to 145%.

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Previously, in February, US announced 10 per cent tariffs on China. Beijing retaliated with a 15 per cent tariff on US coal and liquefied natural gas products, and a 10 per cent tariff on crude oil, agricultural machinery, and large-displacement cars.

The US raised tariffs by another 10 per cent, bringing levies against Chinese imports to 20 per cent. China retaliated by imposing a 15 per cent tariff on US chicken, wheat, corn, and cotton, and a 10 per cent tariff on sorghum, soybeans, pork, beef, aquatic products, fruits, vegetables, and dairy products.