China Imposes Additional Tariffs on Key US Ag Imports

BEIJING — On Tuesday, China unveiled a decision to levy additional tariffs as high as 15% on essential U.S. agricultural imports such as chicken, pork, soybeans, and beef. This move also extends control measures on business transactions with American firms. The newly announced tariffs by the Commerce Ministry are slated to be enforced starting March 10. These measures come as a retaliatory response to President Donald Trump’s mandate to increase tariffs on Chinese imports, raising them to a blanket rate of 20%, which came into effect on the same day.

Under these new tariffs, U.S. agricultural products like chicken, wheat, corn, and cotton will incur an additional 15% tax. Meanwhile, levies on sorghum, soybeans, pork, beef, seafood, fruits, vegetables, and dairy products are set to rise by 10%. In a concurrent move, China has added ten U.S. enterprises to its unreliable entity roster, effectively prohibiting these companies from partaking in import or export endeavors related to China and barring them from pursuing new investments in the nation.

The affected companies include TCOM, Limited Partnership; Stick Rudder Enterprises LLC; Teledyne Brown Engineering; Huntington Ingalls Industries; S3 AeroDefense; Cubic Corporation; TextOre; ACT1 Federal; Exovera; and Planate Management Group. This action comes as an extension of China’s policy, following the recent inclusion of two firms, PVH Group and Illumina, on this list just last month. Additionally, China has expanded its export control list to incorporate 15 U.S. companies, covering sectors such as aerospace and defense, with entities like General Dynamics Land Systems and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems included in the list.

The ministry justified these actions by asserting that these added U.S. entities pose a threat to China’s national security and interests, consequently leading to a ban on the export of dual-use items to these companies. Historically, China has been a significant buyer of American agricultural products. Although China’s intake dipped when Trump initiated a trade confrontation during his first presidency, it subsequently witnessed a recovery. Throughout the 2021-22 period, the U.S. recorded unparalleled export values to China concerning products like soybeans, corn, beef, chicken meat, tree nuts, and sorghum, with cotton exports also witnessing a resurgence.

According to the USDA, American agricultural exports to China amounted to $33.8 billion in fiscal 2023 and $36.4 billion in fiscal 2022. Nonetheless, China has been aiming to diversify its agricultural import avenues, increasingly sourcing soybeans from countries like Brazil and Argentina. The Ministry’s list includes around two dozen U.S. farm exports subjected to the additional 15% tariffs, comprising chicken feet and wings, alongside 711 items set for a 10% tariff increase.