President Donald Trump mentioned Friday that he’ll impose a further 100% tariff on China and restrict U.S. exports of software program, escalating the commerce battle after months of it showing to ease towards a decision.
The newest salvo got here after China restricted its exports of uncommon earths, that are crucial minerals used throughout industries, from the tech sector to automakers and protection contractors.
Late within the afternoon, Trump took to Fact Social to decry Beijing’s “massive scale Export Controls on just about each product they make.”
“Primarily based on the truth that China has taken this unprecedented place, and talking just for the usA., and never different Nations who have been equally threatened, beginning November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, relying on any additional actions or modifications taken by China), the US of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they’re at present paying,” he added. “Additionally on November 1st, we’ll impose Export Controls on any and all crucial software program.”
That will deliver U.S. tariffs on China to 130%, nearing the 145% price Trump imposed in April on “Liberation Day” and the instant aftermath—earlier than the U.S. agreed to place its highest levies on maintain whereas China paused its retaliatory duties as negotiations unfolded.
Shares and bond yields tumbled as Wall Avenue braced a possible new spherical of tit-for-tat retaliation. The S&P 500 plunged 2.7%, struggling its worst selloff for the reason that top of the commerce battle chaos in April.
China has a stranglehold on uncommon earths, producing greater than 90% of the world’s processed uncommon earths and uncommon earth magnets. That has served as a key supply of leverage over the U.S.
In the meantime, grain costs fell after Trump recommended earlier on Friday that he wouldn’t meet Chinese language President Xi Jinping later this month at an financial summit in South Korea.
That dashed hopes that the 2 leaders might attain a commerce deal that features Chinese language purchases of U.S. soybeans, which traditionally have been a prime export however have failed to attract any orders from China this harvest season.
“Don’t suppose China’s soybean purchases are going to restart anytime quickly … they usually now actually aren’t the most important merchandise on the bilateral financial agenda,” Brad Setser, a senior fellow on the Council on International Relations and a deputy assistant secretary on the Treasury Division throughout the Obama administration, posted on X.
Earlier than the flare-up, U.S.-China commerce talks had been progressing after Trump reached offers with the European Union, Japan, South Korea and different prime buying and selling companions.
However tensions remained, together with on the difficulty of uncommon earths whereas the U.S. had moved to limit different nations’ exports of semiconductor-related merchandise to China.
Additionally this week, the U.S. introduced port charges on Chinese language ships, prompting Beijing to impose an identical price on U.S. ships docking at Chinese language ports. China additionally launched an antitrust investigation into U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm.
Then on Thursday, China’s commerce ministry mentioned that beginning on Dec. 1 a license shall be required for overseas firms to export merchandise with greater than 0.1% of uncommon earths from China or which can be made with Chinese language manufacturing know-how.
“Our relationship with China over the previous six months has been an excellent one, thereby making this transfer on Commerce an much more shocking one,” Trump mentioned in an earlier Fact Social publish. “I’ve all the time felt that they’ve been mendacity in wait, and now, as typical, I’ve been confirmed proper!”
