The Tariff Law is the latest addition to Beijing’s arsenal of trade defence instruments as it maintains an uneasy truce with the US following a trade war that kicked off during the Trump administration. — AFP picBEIJING, April 26 — China today passed a law leaving its biggest trade partners in no doubt that it can hit back should they put tariffs on the exports of the world’s No.2 economy as Washington and Brussels take aim at Beijing over excess industrial capacity.
The law, which will take effect from December 1, outlines a range of legal provisions related to tariffs on Chinese imports and exports, from what constitutes tax incentives to China’s right to hit back at countries that renege on trade agreements.
“It’s like a nuclear weapon: the point of having it is not to use it, but to deter others from using the same against you,” said Henry Gao, professor at Singapore Management University.“You could argue that this is not really necessary, as when China upgraded its Foreign Trade Law in 2004, there were measures on applying retaliatory tariffs,” Gao added.