China yesterday announced tariffs on more than US$2.6 billion worth of Canadian agricultural and food products, retaliating against levies Ottawa introduced in October last year and opening a new front in a trade war largely driven by US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats.
The levies, announced by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and scheduled to take effect on March 20, match the 100 percent and 25 percent import duties Canada slapped on China-made electric vehicles and steel and aluminum products just more than four months ago.
By excluding canola — which is also known as rapeseed, and was one of Canada’s top exports to the world’s No.1 agricultural importer prior to China investigating it for anti-dumping last year — Beijing might be keeping the door open for trade talks.
Photo: Reuters
However, the tariffs also serve as a warning shot, analysts said, with the Trump administration having signaled it could ease 25 percent import levies the White House is threatening Canada and Mexico with if they apply the same extra 20 percent duty he has slapped on Chinese goods over fentanyl flows.
“Canada’s measures seriously violate World Trade Organization rules, constitute a typical act of protectionism and are discriminatory measures that severely harm China’s legitimate rights and interests,” China’s commerce ministry said in a statement.
China would apply a 100 percent tariff to more than US$1 billion of Canadian rapeseed oil, oil cakes and pea imports, and a 25 percent duty on US$1.6 billion worth of Canadian aquatic products and pork.
“The timing may serve as a warning shot,” said Dan Wang (王丹), China director at Eurasia Group in Singapore. “By striking now, China reminds Canada of the cost of aligning too closely with American trade policy.”
“China’s delayed response [to Ottawa’s October tariffs] likely reflects both capacity constraints and strategic signaling,” she said. “The commerce ministry is stretched thin, juggling trade disputes with the US and European Union.”
“Canada, a lower priority, had to wait its turn,” she added.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in August last year said that Ottawa was imposing the levies to counter what he called China’s intentional state-directed policy of overcapacity, following the lead of the US and the EU, both of which have also applied import levies on Chinese-made electric vehicles.
In response, China in September last year launched an anti-dumping investigation into Canadian canola imports. More than half of Canada’s canola exports go to China and the trade was worth US$3.7 billion in 2023, the Canola Council of Canada said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College