Trump set to impose tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese imports

US President Donald Trump has decided to impose tariffs on about $50 billion worth of Chinese imports, the latest move in his intensifying campaign to rewrite the rules of global trade that could potentially spark a trade war.

Trump is due to unveil revisions to his initial tariff list targeting Chinese goods as early as Friday, an administration official said on Thursday.

The list will contain 800 product categories, down from 1,300 previously introduced, according to another administration official and an industry source familiar with the list.

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin opposed imposing the tariffs at a White House meeting on Thursday but he was not expected to prevail, the official said.

The announcement follows Trump’s decisions in recent weeks to begin levying tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from the European Union, Canada, Mexico, and Japan, provoking a rift with G7 allies.

The Trump administration’s trade hawks, including White House trade and manufacturing adviser Peter Navarro and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, have advocated a tougher approach to address US allegations that China has misappropriated American intellectual property through joint venture requirements, state-backed acquisitions of US technology firms and outright theft.

Beijing warned that it was ready to respond if Washington chose to ratchet up trade tensions.

The Chinese government’s top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi, said his country was prepared to respond if Trump went ahead with the tariffs.

If Washington adopts tariffs, Beijing is expected to hit back with its own duties on US imports, including soybeans, cars, chemicals and planes, according to a list it released in early April.

The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that Thursday Trump’s new tariffs threaten to undermine the global trading system, prompt retaliation by other countries and damage the US economy.

Christine Lagarde told reporters in Washington that a trade war would have a "serious" economic impact on the US and global economies.

Trump has repeatedly blamed unfair trade deals and abusive practices by low-wage countries like China and Mexico for the massive US trade deficit and the loss of high-paying American factory jobs.

The trade deficit with China alone rose 8 percent during Trump’s first year in office to a record $375.2 billion, or nearly half the total global gap between US imports and exports, according to the Commerce Department.

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