The Wall Street Journal reported that the US government is considering tighter sanctions on China in response to Beijing’s restrictions on US high-tech companies in China.
The US could open new front in its trade offensive against China. According to sources familiar with the matter, the office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is preparing document, which will list unlawful restrictions of US technology firms in the Chinese market by Beijing, under section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974.
Earlier, the White House administration has already struck blows at telecommunications-equipment giant ZTE Corp. According to experts, the trade war between the world’s two largest economies has been brewing for almost a year. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly proposed to reduce the US trade deficit with China.
The recent introduction of tariffs on Chinese imports by Trump has entailed retaliatory measures from China. The latest response from the country’s finance ministry took place earlier this month when Donald Trump promised to set tariffs on Chinese goods worth $100 billion.
In early April this year, US authorities published a list of Chinese exports that will be targeted for a 25% tariff hike. The restrictions will affect Chinese products in aerospace, information technology, engineering, robotics, and other sectors. The full list includes 1,300 items of Chinese goods.
