After Donald Trump initiated a trade war with China, Beijing quickly responded with countermeasures. In retaliation, China imposed new tariffs on a range of U.S. goods and launched an investigation into Google for alleged anti-trust violations.

China Imposes Tariffs on U.S. Goods

China's foreign ministry announced it would impose 15% tariffs on U.S. coal and LNG. Additionally, a 10% tariff will apply to crude oil, farm equipment, and large-displacement cars. The statement from China's foreign ministry criticized the U.S. tariffs, saying, "The US’s unilateral tariff increase seriously violates the rules of the World Trade Organisation. It is not only unhelpful in solving its own problems, but also damages normal economic and trade cooperation between China and the US."

Google Investigation

China also opened an investigation into Google. The probe, focused on alleged anti-trust violations, was announced by the State Administration for Market Regulation. Although the statement didn’t provide details, it's important to note that Google’s search engine is blocked in China. However, the company continues to work with local partners, including advertisers.

New Trade Measures and Currency Impact

China introduced more trade measures. This included export controls on tungsten-related materials and placing companies like PVH Corporation and Illumina Inc. on its unreliable entity list. As a result, the offshore yuan dropped 0.3%, reaching 7.3340 in the afternoon. Bloomberg also reported that the Australian and New Zealand dollars fell by at least 0.8%.

Trump's Trade Concerns

Over the weekend, Trump cited Beijing's failure to stop the flow of illegal drugs into the U.S. His order also included provisions for higher tariffs if China responds with its own measures.