China and the United States have begun imposing additional tariffs on each other's goods, the latest escalation in a bruising trade war despite signs talks will resume sometime this month.
China on Sunday started to impose additional tariffs on some of the US goods on a $US75-billion ($A111 billion) target list.
The extra five per cent and 10 per cent tariffs were levied on 1,717 items of a total of 5,078 products originating from the US. Beijing will start collecting additional tariffs on the rest of the items from December 15.
Beijing also started levying a five per cent tariff on US crude oil on Sunday, the first time US oil has been targeted since the world's two largest economies started their trade war more than a year ago.
US President Donald Trump. Source: AP
The Trump administration's latest round of tariffs on Chinese imports also took effect early on Sunday, potentially raising prices Americans pay for some clothes, shoes, sporting goods and other consumer goods in advance of the holiday shopping season.
The 15 per cent taxes apply to about $US112 billion ($A166 billion) of Chinese imports. All told, more than two-thirds of the consumer goods the United States imports from China now face higher taxes. The administration had largely avoided hitting consumer items in its earlier rounds of tariff hikes.
But with prices of many retail goods now likely to rise, the administration's move threatens the US economy's main driver: Consumer spending. As businesses pull back on investment spending and exports slow in the face of weak global growth, American shoppers have been a key bright spot for the economy.
As a result of Trump's higher tariffs, many US companies have warned that they will be forced to pass on to their customers the higher prices they will pay on Chinese imports. Some businesses, though, may decide in the end to absorb the higher costs rather than raise prices for their customers.
After Sunday's tariff hike, 87 per cent of textiles and clothing from China and 52 per cent of shoes will be subject to import taxes.
On December 15, the administration is scheduled to impose a second round of 15 per cent tariffs - this time on roughly $US160 billion of imports. If those duties take effect, virtually all goods imported from China will be covered.
China's President Xi Jinping. Source: Corbis News
The Trump administration has been locked in a trade war with China for more than a year, spurred by its assertion that China steals US trade secrets and unfairly subsidises its own companies in its drive to overtake the United States in such high-tech industries as artificial intelligence and electric cars.
To try to force Beijing to reform its trade practices, the Trump administration has imposed import taxes on billions of dollars' worth of Chinese imports, and China has retaliated with tariffs on US exports.
