The Wall Street Journal and other media outlets have quoted people familiar with the matter revealing that US President Donald Trump has approved the imposition of tariffs on about 50 billion U.S. dollars of Chinese imports to increase the trade offensives against China. It is not yet clear when this tariff will take effect. China has stated that it plans to impose retaliatory tariffs on equivalent amounts of U.S. goods.Informed sources said that the U.S. Trade Representative’s office is expected to publish the list of tariff-added products on Friday and publish it in the “Federal Register” next week. The goods in question will be subject to a 25% tariff; it is expected that this list will be roughly in line with the preliminary list released by the Office of the United States Trade Representative in early April.
In view of Trump’s decision, Chinese importers and exporters have different opinions:
Fear of increased competition in neighboring countries
Kevin Au Yeung, Marketing Manager Asia at RKG Asia, said: “At this stage, we have not sent much volume from Europe to China. This taxation will not affect us for the time being. However, if the situation continues until the next production season arrives, it will certainly affect us. Other countries that export fruit to China might also benefit from it. For example Turkey, which exports cherries to China. In the long run, what I worry about most is that once the export of U.S. fruit to China becomes difficult, trade opportunities will flock to other markets, causing prices to be lowered."
Speed of delivery, not pricing, critical for further development
Sam, the general manager of Shenzhen GoldAnda, an import company in the South of the country, commented: "For us, the increase in tariffs is not the biggest problem. In recent years, people's income levels and awareness of healthy eating have all increased dramatically. Consumers are willing to Pay high prices for high-quality fruits, but along with the increase in tariffs, other related trade barriers will also be strengthened, which may delay the speed of agricultural exports in China and affect the freshness and quality of products. We may turn to other countries with better trade relations with China to import fruit.”
Stricter customs inspections might prove difficult
Zhu Zheng of Chen's Sun Fruit (full name Zhengzhou Chenshi Sunshine Fruit and Vegetable Trade Co., Ltd) agrees to the latter: "If China takes retaliatory trade measures, not only taxation, but also stricter requirements on customs inspections will result in slower customs clearance and affect fruit varieties. The import and export trader’s trade risk. In this way, the Chinese importer and exporter’s purchasing demand for US agricultural products will inevitably be reduced to a certain extent.”
Please find below some further background reading and previously published articles: