China: Must Take Countermeasures to Latest U.S. Tariffs

China has to take necessary countermeasures to the latest U.S. tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese goods, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.

The ministry also said the U.S. tariffs violate a consensus reached by the leaders of two countries and go off the right track of resolving disputes via negotiation.

In a separate statement, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said, “We hope the U.S. will meet China halfway, and implement the consensus of the … heads of the two countries in Osaka.”

China hopes to find mutually acceptable solutions through dialogue and consultation on the basis of equality and mutual respect, she added.

The United States said early this month it would slap duties from Sept. 1 on $300 billion of Chinese goods, which would effectively cover all of China’s exports to the United States.

But President Donald Trump backed off part of the plan on Tuesday, delaying duties on items such as cellphones, laptops and other consumer goods, in the hopes of blunting their impact on U.S. holiday sales. Tariffs will still apply to those products from mid-December.