China will impose a 34% tariff on imports of US goods from next Thursday (10 April), matching the tariff on Chinese imports announced by US President Donald Trump earlier this week.
The Commerce Ministry in Beijing said it would impose more export controls on rare earths, ie materials used in computer chips and electric vehicle batteries.
Samarium and its compounds, which are used in aerospace manufacturing and the defence sector, and another element called gadolinium, which is used in MRI machines, were also included on the list.
"The purpose of the Chinese government's implementation of export controls on relevant items in accordance with the law is to better safeguard national security and interests, and to fulfill international obligations such as non-proliferation," the Commerce Ministry said in a statement.
China's customs administration has suspended imports of chicken from US suppliers Mountaire Farms and Coastal Processing as a banned drug called furazolidone had been repeatedly detected in their shopments.
Furthermore, China has also filed a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization, arguing that tariffs were “a typical unilateral bullying practice that endangers the stability of the global economic and trade order.”
Responding to the announcement on the Truth Social platform, Trump said: "CHINA PLAYED IT WRONG, THEY PANICKED - THE ONE THING THEY CANNOT AFFORD TO DO!"
The news comes as many major US indexes continue to experience crushing losses, with the S&P 500 down 3.6% before the bell, and futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (-3.4%) and Nasdaq (-4%) also tumbling significantly.
Thursday proved to be the worst day for Wall Street trading in five years, and markets in Europe also struggled, with the FTSE 100 (-3.8%), DAX in Frankfurt (-5%), and the CAC40 in Paris (-4.2%) all down at lunchtime.
At the time of writing, the ISEQ 20 was down 4.4% since closing on Thursday.
In another post on Truth Social, Trump said, "TO THE MANY INVESTORS COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES AND INVESTING MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF MONEY, MY POLICIES WILL NEVER CHANGE.
"THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO GET RICH, RICHER THAN EVER BEFORE!!!"
Earlier on Friday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin advocated for a "measured" response from the EU to US tariffs, and said that the White House's "antipathy" towards Europe is "misplaced".
(Pic: Getty Images)
