Tariff Goes Up To 245% For China, Says White House

New York: Has the Donald Trump administration silently ramped up the tariffs on Chinese imports by up to 245%? Confusion swirled on Wednesday after a fact sheet released by the White House mentioned that China now faces up to 245% tariffs on imports.This has led to speculation on social media about whether the Trump administration has increased tariffs from the present 145% to 245%. However, that is not the case.

For example, Chinese syringes and needles are being charged the highest tariff at 245%. But, this is due to present tariffs piling on previous tariffs. Under the Joe Biden regime, a 100% import duty on Chinese syringes was imposed in September 2024 in a bid to protect American manufacturers. Now, Trump has added a 20% fentanyl (opioid drug) tariff and a 125% reciprocal tariff.

Woollen sweaters imported from China now face a levy of 168.5%. Woollen sweaters attract a base tariff of 16%, regardless of the country of origin. Under the Biden regime, an additional 7.5% tariff was imposed. The fresh development will nonetheless sharply escalate the trade conflict between the US and China.

China, which has retaliated with 125% levies on US goods, gave a measured response to the sharp increase in import duty. You can ask the US side for the specific tax rate figures,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said. The White House fact sheet says that China now faces up to a 245% tariff on imports to the United States as a “result of its retaliatory actions”.

While the US has not explicitly mentioned what the retaliatory actions are, China, in the past few days, has suspended exports of key high-tech materials, including heavy rare earth metals and magnets. China has also directed its airlines not to take any further deliveries of Boeing jets.