{"id":81927,"date":"2018-03-22T14:54:00","date_gmt":"2018-03-22T14:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/127.0.0.1:10081\/?p=81927 "},"modified":"2018-03-22T14:54:00","modified_gmt":"2018-03-22T14:54:00","slug":"81927-revision-v1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/minzhuzhongguo.org\/?p=81927","title":{"rendered":"U.S. President Trump Takes Action on Chinese Imports and Signs China Trade Measure"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last Updated: March 22, 2018 2:02 PM<\/span><\/p>\n

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President Donald Trump signs a presidential memorandum imposing tariffs and investment restrictions on China in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, March 22, 2018, in Washington.<\/span><\/p>\n

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WHITE HOUSE — U.S. President Donald Trump signed a document Thursday setting the stage for an estimated $60 billion in new tariffs on Chinese imports that could quickly lead to a trade war with Beijing.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The U.S. leader targeted China’s alleged years-long theft of U.S. intellectual property, imposing new restrictions on Chinese investment in the U.S. that mirror regulations that American companies face when they invest in China.<\/span><\/p>\n

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“We have a tremendous intellectual property theft going on,” Trump said.<\/span><\/p>\n

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He said the U.S. wants reciprocal trade and tariff deals with China and other countries.<\/span><\/p>\n

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“If they charge us, we charge them the same thing,” Trump said at the White House.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Trump, throughout his 14-month presidency, often has praised Chinese President Xi Jinping and cited his good relationship with him. But Trump also has often complained about the U.S.’s $375 billion annual trade deficit with China as reason enough to impose new restrictions. Trump said that with the increased tariffs he hopes to cut the trade deficit with China by $100 billion annually.<\/span><\/p>\n

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China<\/span> will retaliate <\/span><\/p>\n

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Ahead of Trump’s announcement, China vowed that it would retaliate.<\/span><\/p>\n

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“China will not sit idly to see its legitimate rights damaged and must take all necessary measures to resolutely defend its legitimate rights,” the Commerce Ministry in Beijing said in a statement.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The prospect of a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies rattled stock markets in the U.S., with the Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 key stocks falling more than 1.5 percent.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The U.S. trade actions come partly in response to what U.S. officials say is the theft and improper transfer of American technology to Chinese companies.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Chinese commerce ministry said ahead of the meeting that China opposes unilateral U.S. trade actions and hopes the two countries can find a mutually beneficial solution through dialogue.<\/span><\/p>\n

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U.S.<\/span> officials spoke to reporters Wednesday about their months-long investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 of Beijing’s trade practices.<\/span><\/p>\n

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China<\/span> has long been considered by many in the international community to have contravened fundamental principles of global trade, despite joining the World Trade Organization in 2001.<\/span><\/p>\n

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There have been a “number of specific failings by China to live up to its WTO obligations,” a U.S. Trade Representative official said in a background briefing for reporters.<\/span><\/p>\n

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WATCH: What is a tariff? <\/span><\/p>\n

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Explainer: What Are Tariffs?<\/span><\/p>\n

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