Anchor: In the face of stricter export controls for rare earths from China, U.S. President Donald Trump is threatening Beijing with an additional 100 percent tariff starting next month. Trump has also suggested his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping may not take place as scheduled on the fringes of the APEC summit in Gyeongju later this month.
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: U.S. President Donald Trump says his administration will impose an additional 100 percent tariff on imports from China starting November 1, in response to Beijing’s announcement earlier in the week that it is tightening its rules for rare earth exports.

On social media Friday, Trump said China has taken an “extraordinarily aggressive” position in imposing large-scale export controls on “virtually every product they make.”

Trump slammed Beijing’s decision as “absolutely unheard of in international trade, and a moral disgrace in dealing with other nations.”

He said Washington will impose a tariff of 100 percent on China, over and above any tariff Beijing currently pays, and will introduce export controls on any and all critical software exports to the country, also effective November 1.

After Beijing announced the new export control measures, Trump earlier threatened to call off an expected meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC) summit in Gyeongju later this month, saying “there seems to be no reason” for the meeting.

Speaking at the Oval Office later in the day, the U.S. president said he has not canceled his meeting with Xi, though he is uncertain whether they will end up meeting, but that he intends to attend the APEC event regardless.

While Washington and Beijing have continued their high-level negotiations after agreeing to lower reciprocal tariffs in May, many observers expected Trump and Xi to reach an understanding in Gyeongju.

Though some see Trump’s latest remarks as a strategic move to increase his bargaining power, concern over new Sino-U.S. trade tensions is on the rise.
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.