China imposes 25 percent tariffs on key US exports

China has retaliated quickly against proposed United States penalties on Chinese goods and announced 25 percent tariffs on critical American exports, including soya beans, aeroplanes and cars. On Tuesday, the administration of President Donald Trump threatened to slap tariffs on $50bn in Chinese imports across 1,300 categories of products, ranging from industrial robots to locomotives. Beijing's response came hours after the US revealed its plans, with China's foreign ministry saying in a statement that "America's measures to impose tariffs have violated the rules of the World Trade Organisation, and have seriously violated China's legal rights". Soya beans are the top US agricultural export to China and were among the 106 products on which China intends to impose the additional tariffs. The US is the second-biggest soya bean supplier to China, after Brazil.