Trump pushing for $200 bn tariffs on China

Washington D.C.: The Donald Trump administration is pushing forward to slap trade tariffs amounting to USD 200 billion of Chinese products as the trade war between Washington and Beijing showed no signs of abetting. However, the announcement of the same is yet to be made.

Earlier this week, the US president had met with top officials and has directed them to proceed with the plan to impose tariffs on China.

CNN quoted a White House spokeswoman, Lindsay Walters, saying, "The President has been clear that he and his administration will continue to take action to address China's unfair trade practices. We encourage China to address the long-standing concerns raised by the United States."

The latest threat from Washington comes as US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has been working to break the deadlock to stop the escalating trade war between the two countries. He had even extended an invitation to Beijing to resume trade negotiations even before the proposed tariffs are yet to kick in.

Welcoming the US' offer, Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson Gao Feng said on Thursday, "The escalation of trade conflicts doesn't benefit either side's interests."

In July, Washington had slapped 25 per cent tariffs on USD 34 billion of Chinese imports and imposed another USD 16 billion last month. China retaliated by imposing 25 per cent tariffs on American goods worth USD 16 billion.

So far, Beijing has imposed 25 per cent tariffs on USD 50 billion of American goods. It has also threatened Washington to impose another round of tariffs amounting to USD 60 billion of US products.

Last month, Trump had directed the Office of the United States Trade Representative to probe the impact of a 10 per cent tariff, which was later increased to 25 per cent.

China is the US' largest trading partner, with almost USD 506 billion worth of Chinese products being sold to Washington last year.

On the one hand, the Trump administration recently slapped tariffs on various countries, including China, claiming that the US was "being treated unfairly in trade" and accusing Beijing of "stealing intellectual property". On the other hand, China chided the US for indulging in "trade bullying."