China on Wednesday raised tariffs on imports from the U.S. to 84%, the country’s latest response in an escalating trade war with President Trump whose 104% tariff on Chinese goods also went into effect on Wednesday.
The 84% tax will make it much more costly for Chinese companies to purchase and bring U.S.-made goods into the country, and could cut U.S. producers off from an important trade market.
President Trump on Wednesday afternoon said he’s increasing the tariff rate on Chinese imports to 125%, while also moving to pause reciprocal tariffs on other countries for 90 days and lowering that rate to 10% for most nations.
China was the third-largest export market for the U.S. in 2023, behind Canada and Mexico, with companies shipping $145 billion worth of goods to the Asian nation, according to the U.S.-China Business Council.
U.S. exports to China supported 931,231 American jobs in 2022, according to the same report, most of which were sustained by agriculture and livestock exports.
What products does China import from the U.S.?
China’s top imports from the U.S. in 2023 were oilseeds and grains, followed by oil and gas. Oilseeds and grain exports fell by $7 billion from 2022 to 2023, and could fall even more substantially under the current tit-for-tat tariff spat between the U.S. and China. Grains include crops such as soybeans, wheat and corn.
“Any new U.S. tariff increases on imports from China, which many lawmakers and political leaders are actively proposing, could adversely impact the American agriculture sector if they trigger retaliatory actions,” the U.S.-China Business Council said in its 2024 report.
Oil and gas shipments to China come predominately from Texas and Louisiana, which together account for 96% of U.S. oil and gas exports.
Pharmaceutical products and medicines, semiconductors and components, aerospace products, chemicals and motor vehicles are also among the largest categories of goods that China imports from the U.S.
Here’s a complete list of the products China imports from the U.S., according to the U.S.-China Business Council:
- Oilseeds and grains: $18.5 billion
- Oil and gas: $17.6 billion
- Other: $15.9 billion
- Pharmaceuticals and medicines: $11.3 billion
- Semiconductors and components: $6.8 billion
- Aerospace products and parts: $6.8 billion
- Navigational and measurement instruments: $6.8 billion
- Basic chemicals: $6.5 billion
- Motor vehicles: $6.1 billion
- Resins and synthetic fibers: $5.5 billion
- Industrial machinery: $5 billion
- Meat products: $4.5 billion
- Medical equipment and supplies: $3.6 billion
- General purpose machinery: $2.6 billion
- Miscellaneous crops: $2.4 billion
- Scrap products: $2.4 billion
- Pulp and paperboard mill products: $2.1 billion
- Miscellaneous manufactured commodities: $2.1 billion
- Computer equipment: $1.8 billion
- Non-ferrous metal products: $1.8 billion
- Motor vehicle parts: $1.7 billion
- Electrical equipment and components: $1.7 billion
- Miscellaneous fabricated metal products: $1.6 billion
- Plastic products: $1.4 billion
- Engines and turbines: $1.4 billion
- Electrical equipment: $1.3 billion
- Communications and service industry machinery: $1.3 billion
- Soaps, cleaning agents and toiletries: $1.3 billion
- Fruits and tree nuts: $1.1 billion
- Coal and petroleum gases: $1.1 billion
- Marine products: $1 billion
Which U.S. states export the most to China?
Broken down by state, Texas was the largest exporter of goods to China in 2023, with Beijing importing $25.7 billion worth of products from the Lone Star State that year.
China also imported $16.4 billion worth of goods from California, and $6.5 billion from Louisiana. South Carolina rounded out the top 10, exporting $3.9 billion worth of goods to China that year.
