US equity futures and offshore Yuan are getting a small bid after-hours following reports confirming President Trump asking USTR Lighthizer to prepare 25% tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods – but (positively?) extending the comment deadline from late-August to Sept 5th.
As a reminder, the first wave of 25% tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese goods took effect last month, prompting immediate in-kind retaliation from China, and the next round on $16 billion could be implemented by the U.S. in the coming days or weeks.
Then, as Bloomberg reports, the administration last month released a list of thousands Chinese products it wants to slap with an additional 10% in tariffs, ranging from television components to handbags and seafood to baseball gloves. The duties could take effect after the administration draws up its revised, final list of imports following a public comment period. Hearings are scheduled for Aug. 20 to 23 and the comment period has been extended to Sept. 5 from late August, according to the administration officials.
And that was enough to spark a relief rally of sorts…
It seems everyone just missed the fact that the Trump administration just confirmed that it is proposing raising planned taxes on $200 billion in Chinese imports to 25% from 10% , turning up the pressure on Beijing in a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.
Which is bound to prompt an angry response from the Chinese who earlier warned the U.S. against “blackmailing and pressuring” it over trade.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it will fight back should the U.S. further increase tariffs. “If the U.S. takes measures to further escalate the situation, we will surely take countermeasures to uphold our legitimate rights and interests,” spokesman Geng Shuang said at a regular press conference on Wednesday.
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