Donald Trump’s trade war with China is about to formally and officially kick off, with tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports going into effect on July 6. China plans to immediately retaliate with an equivalent amount of tariffs. But pre-war skirmishes have already been going on:
One U.S. manufacturer said Chinese authorities on average used to inspect 2 percent of the vehicles it sent abroad. Since June, agents have taken a closer look at every product.
“Don’t expect the ‘war’ to be out in the open in some imaginary tit-for-tat tariff battlefield,” said James Zimmerman, a partner in the Beijing office of international law firm Perkins Coie LLP. “The real battle will be on the flanks” — in the form of unnecessary inspections, product quarantines and heightened regulatory scrutiny.
The U.S., meanwhile, will also be ramping up trade war with the European Union, Canada, and Mexico, which is telling. Donald Trump’s problem isn’t with specific problematic Chinese trading practices, and he’s not engaging in a measured response. He’s just firing off tariffs all over the place to make himself feel tough. According to Trump, “Trade wars are good, and easy to win!” But we’ll see how he’s feeling after a few months of multidirection trade war, including with allies.