China today said tit-for-tat tariffs will "destroy" trade between the world's top two economies, after Washington fired the next shot in a ballooning trade war, readying fresh levies on USD 200 billion in Chinese goods.
"The outburst of large-scale mutual levying of tariffs between China and the United States will inevitably destroy Sino-US trade," assistant minister of commerce Li Chenggang told a forum in Beijing.
US policy "actually interferes with the process of economic globalisation" and "damages the world economic order," charged Li.
On Friday, the US imposed 25-percent tariffs on around USD 34 billion in Chinese goods, sparking an immediate dollar-for-dollar retaliation from Beijing.
Washington today announced it was starting the process to slap 10-per cent tariffs on another USD 200 billion in Chinese export goods as soon as September.
Analysts have warned that a spiralling trade war between the world's two financial powerhouses could have a damaging impact on the global economy.
Source: moneycontrol.com