China responds to the Trump tariffs

In response to the US imposing a 10% tariff on all imports from China, Beijing announced it’s implementing a 15% tariff on US coal and liquefied natural gas products, as well as a 10% tariff on crude oil, agricultural machinery, and large-engine cars imported from the US. The tariffs are set to take effect on Monday.

Their impact…is expected to be limited, per analysts. China accounted for 2.3% of America’s total natural gas exports, and imported 110,000 US vehicles last year.

Google also caught a stray. Minutes after the US tariffs took effect, China announced it was launching an antitrust investigation into the tech giant.

And while we’re on the topic of strays – PVH Corp, which owns Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, and US biotech firm Illumina were both added to China’s blacklist "unreliable entity" list.

That’s not all. China also announced export controls on several elements designated “critical minerals” by the US Geological Survey, meaning they're considered essential to American economic or national security (there are 50 critical minerals; China is the world’s leading producer for 30).

🤔 Between the lines: Beijing appears to have shifted its strategy from the first Trump administration, when it largely just responded to tariffs with tariffs, showcasing more willingness to flex its strategic muscles via export controls or by targeting individual US companies, many analysts say. Its economy is also in a worse state than during the first US-China trade conflict.