'Typical bullying behavior,’ China slams new US tariffs

ISTANBUL

Beijing’s top diplomat on Wednesday slammed new tariffs by the US on Chinese exports, state media reported.

“The US has been unscrupulously suppressing China's normal economic, trade and technological activities, which is the most typical bullying behavior in the world today,” Wang Yi told reporters in Beijing.

Wang’s comment came in reaction to a raise in tariffs by the US on Chinese goods worth $18 billion.

The Biden administration targeted China’s semiconductors, solar cells, and electric vehicles among other exports with a huge raise in tariffs.

It raised the tariff rate on semiconductors from 25% to 50% by 2025 while tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles will increase from 25% to 100% this year.

The White House said the tariff rate on lithium-ion electric vehicle batteries will increase from 7.5% to 25%.

“China’s unfair trade practices concerning technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation are threatening American businesses and workers,” the White House said, adding that Beijing was “flooding global markets with artificially low-priced exports.”