China ramps up US tariffs to 125 percent in new salvo against Trump

China on Friday escalated tariffs on imports from the United States to 125 percent, in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s punishing regime against Chinese goods.

Beijing’s finance ministry said that the U.S. was threatening to become a laughing stock as it jacked up tariffs on Chinese goods higher and higher to 145 percent earlier this week.

“Even if the US continues to impose higher tariffs, it will no longer make economic sense and will become a joke in the history of world economy,” the finance ministry said.

Trump had initially announced a tariff hike to 125 percent, but the White House later corrected it to 145 percent, factoring in an existing 20 percent levy already imposed in response to what it alleges is Beijing’s complicity in the flow of fentanyl to the U.S.

“At the current tariff level, there is no market acceptance for U.S. goods exported to China,” Beijing’s economic mandarins added. “If the U.S. continues to play the tariff numbers game, China will ignore it. However, if the U.S. insists on continuing to substantially infringe on China’s interests, China will resolutely counterattack and fight to the end.”

Trump accused China of “ripping off” the United States in a lengthy Truth Social post on Wednesday, declaring that those days are over.

While other countries have been granted a 90-day partial reprieve on the so-called reciprocal tariffs — with a 10 percent baseline remaining — China was excluded. Trump justified the decision by pointing to what he described as Beijing’s abuse of the U.S as “no longer sustainable or acceptable.”

During a Friday meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Beijing, China’s leader Xi Jinping called on the EU to join forces against the U.S, telling Sánchez that “there are no winners in a trade war, and going against the world will only lead to self-isolation.” 

Xi urged China and the EU to uphold their international responsibilities and to “jointly safeguard the trend of economic globalization and a fair international trade environment, and jointly resist unilateral and intimidating practices.”

This story has been updated.