China has announced 15% tariffs on U.S. coal and liquefied %NaturalGas (LNG), along with a 10% tariff on U.S. crude oil imports beginning Feb. 10.
The tariffs on U.S. energy products are in retaliation to U.S. President Donald Trump’s threatened 10% tariffs on all imports of Chinese goods that takes effect today (Feb. 4).
While Trump has suspended his threat to impose 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, he has yet to do so for China, leading to fears of a trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
In addition to retaliating with tariffs of its own, China has also appealed America’s unilateral action on tariffs to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Other U.S. goods that are being subject to China’s 15% retaliatory tariffs include industrial metals and agricultural machinery.
This latest spat marks another in a series of ongoing trade conflicts between the U.S. and China since 2018, which is when Trump last imposed tariffs on America’s trade partners.
Analysts have warned that a tit-for-tat trade battle between the U.S. and China could disrupt global energy markets and commodity prices, particularly for LNG and crude oil.
Some analysts have warned that Chinese LNG importers may have no choice but to replace U.S. liquefied natural gas with non-U.S. products in the spot market.
In 2024, China imported $163 billion U.S. worth of goods from America, including $3.25 billion U.S. in crude oil, $651.65 million U.S. in LNG and $520.99 million U.S. of coal.
China remains the world’s largest importer of energy products, relying on imports for about 70% of its supply.
Analysts further warn that the new U.S. tariffs may accelerate Beijing’s efforts to diversify its energy imports toward suppliers such as Canada, Russia, and Qatar.
