Beijing, February 4 (RHC)-- China has announced retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods after U.S. President Donald Trump initiated a trade war by imposing an additional 10% tariff on all Chinese products. 

China’s Finance Ministry said it would levy 15% tariffs on U.S. coal and liquefied natural gas and 10% on crude oil, farm equipment and some U.S.-made vehicles.  Beijing is also imposing new export controls on certain minerals, including rare earth elements critical to the electronics industry. 

This comes after Trump said he would delay plans by at least a month to impose tariffs of 25% on Canada and Mexico.  Trump’s reversal came after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to take steps to crack down on fentanyl smuggling at the U.S. border — even though Canada contributes less than 1% of fentanyl consumed illegally in the United States.  

And Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Trump called off the tariffs after she agreed to send 10,000 troops to the border.  President Sheinbaum said: “He asked me how long I wanted to pause tariffs.  I said, 'Forever.'  He told me, 'How much time?'  I told him, 'A month.'  I’m sure that during this month we’ll be able to deliver good results for his people and the people of Mexico.”

President Sheinbaum said that under the deal, the U.S. pledged to slow the illegal trafficking of weapons to Mexico, though Trump’s account of the agreement on Truth Social made no mention of that commitment.

[ SOURCE: DEMOCRACY NOW ]