DONALD Trump has announced extra 100 per cent tariffs on China in response to Beijing’s sweeping rare earth export controls which he branded a “moral disgrace”.
The outraged US President’s bombshell announcement is the latest escalation in the brutal trade war against China – with Trump accusing the country of taking an “extraordinarily aggressive position” on trade.
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In a fiery Truth Social post, he hit back at Beijing who he said had sent an “extremely hostile letter to the world” outlining new trade measures controlling “virtually every product they make”.
The American leader said he would also impose his own export controls on any critical software heading to China.
The Don said: “Starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China.”
He added: “Also on November 1st, we will impose Export Controls on any and all critical software.”
Trump said China’s new measures were part of a plan devised “years ago” and called the rules “unheard of in International Trade, and a moral disgrace in dealing with other Nations”.
The President also told reporters on Friday China’s move was “shocking” and came “out of the blue”.
When asked what other countermeasures he still had in his arsenal to use against Beijing, he said there were “a lot more”.
Describing China’s new trade controls, he said: “They didn’t really aim it at us they aimed it at the whole world.”
The Don also confirmed he had not pulled out of any potential meeting with Xi – as the pair are both set to be in South Korea in two weeks.
It comes after China declared their dramatic new measures on Thursday – which tighten export controls on rare earths and other critical materials needed in advanced tech.
Xi Jinping’s nation controls about 70 per cent of the global rare earth mineral supply.
But crucially, Beijing currently oversees 90 per cent of rare earth processing – giving China massive leverage over the high-tech supply chain.
These key components go into everyday tech items like solar panels to smartphones, as well as advanced devices such as missile systems and night vision goggles.
Earlier on Friday, the US President made a separate post where he described “some very strange things” happening in China.
He said in the previous post: “They are becoming very hostile, and sending letters to Countries throughout the World, that they want to impose Export Controls on each and every element of production having to do with Rare Earths, and virtually anything else they can think of, even if it’s not manufactured in China.
“Nobody has ever seen anything like this but, essentially, it would ‘clog’ the Markets, and make life difficult for virtually every Country in the World, especially for China.”
The disappointed Don also said: “I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at APEC, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so.”
He also announced he was weighing up his options for countermeasures – just hours before the latest post declaring 100 per cent tariffs on Beijing.
Trump’s earlier post even sparked a frantic Wall Street sell-off – before the huge announcement later on.
The S&P 500 fell sharply by 2.71 per cent – its largest decline in one day since the Liberation Day tariffs on April 10.
Trump’s new tariff rate is the latest chapter in the tit-for-tat trade war with China.
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