INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
If Donald Trump imposes the tariffs, Beijing may hit back with a set of its own
(File)Washington: The United States has nearly completed a second list of tariffs on $100 billion in Chinese
goods, as President Donald Trump prepares to enact an initial round of duties that is expected to trigger an in-kind response from Beijing,
several sources said.The second wave of products has been cued up as Washington prepares to announce on Friday a list of about $50 billion
They are part of Trump's decision to go forward with "pretty significant" tariffs, an administration official said on Thursday.The $100
billion list will be subject to the same public comment and hearing process as the $50 billion list, so it could take 60 days or more to put
into effect, three sources familiar with the Trump administration's thinking on tariff plans told Reuters.The list is intended to minimise
consumers and businesses by selecting goods where there are ample alternative supplies from other countries
Eliminating any impact may be impossible."There's no question, that to get to $100 billion you're going to hit consumer products coming in
from China," a person briefed by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told Reuters.This person also said Ross had said the list would take aim at
products for which China supplied 33 percent or less of total U.S
imports in individual product categories, making it easier to shift to other countries' supplies.The person, like the other sources familiar
with the administration's thinking, declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to the media.A Reuters analysis of
Census Bureau import data in April showed that there were about 7,600 consumer and industrial goods still available for tariffs with a
combined value of $101 billion in which China accounts for 40 percent or less of U.S
imports.Another person familiar with the administration's thinking said it could be difficult to reach $100 billion with a 33 percent
threshold.Press officials at the U.S
Commerce Department and U.S
Trade Representative's office declined to comment on the tariff list plans.Trump has pledged to enforce fair and reciprocal trading
relations with China, with the U.S
bilateral trade in goods deficit having reached $375 billion last year, and amid long-running complaints of what foreign companies see as
forced technology transfers and market restrictions.On Thursday, China reiterated its preference for dialogue to resolve differences, but
said it was ready to respond if Trump moved forward with tariffs.Speaking alongside U.S
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Beijing, Chinese State Councillor Wang Yi said there were two choices when it came to trade. Mike Pompeo
met Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday
(Reuters)"The first choice is cooperation and mutual benefit
The other choice is confrontation and mutual loss
China chooses the first," Wang told reporters
side can also make the same wise choice
Of course, we have also made preparations to respond to the second kind of choice.China has published its own list of threatened tariffs on
goods, including soybeans, aircraft, and autos, and has said it would hit back if Washington followed up with further measures.© Thomson
Reuters 2018(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from a syndicated
