Trump says he plans to impose 10% tariffs on China as early as February 1

President Donald Trump said his team is discussing a 10% tariff on China and that the tariff could take effect as soon as February 1.

“We’re talking about a 10 percent tariff on China, based on the fact that they’re sending fentanyl to Mexico and Canada,” the president said, speaking to reporters at the White House Tuesday evening.

“February 1 is probably the date we’re looking at,” he added.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is an addictive drug that causes tens of thousands of overdose deaths in the United States each year. Reducing illicit supplies of the drug, whose precursors are mainly produced in China and Mexico, has become an area in which Washington and Beijing have agreed to cooperate.

Trump said Friday he spoke on the phone with Chinese President Xi Jinping about fentanyl and trade. The Chinese side’s statement said Xi called for cooperation and presented economic ties between the two countries as mutually beneficial.

There are “no winners” in a trade war, Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang said Tuesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, according to an official translation. He called for international efforts to support “economic globalization” and “distribute it better”.

The Chinese offshore yuan initially strengthened, before weakening to trade at 7.2796 against the greenback.

China’s major state and financial media outlets did not mention China’s proposed tariffs, while highlighting other Trump headlines, such as his warning about tariffs on the European Union.

The United States is China’s largest trading partner domestically. Chinese imports from the United States fell 0.1% in dollar terms last year, while exports rose 4.9%, according to official data accessed via Wind Information.

Data shows that China’s trade surplus with the United States in 2024 was $361 million, higher than the $316.9 million reported for 2020, the last full year of Trump’s first term. At the time, the White House raised tariffs on Chinese goods in an effort to increase the country’s imports of American goods and address long-standing concerns of American businesses in China. Beijing had reciprocated by assuming its own duties.

“If the United States imposed additional 10 percent tariffs on China and China responded accordingly, U.S. GDP would be $55 billion lower over the four years of the second Trump administration, and $128 billion lower. billion dollars less in China,” estimates the Peterson Institute for American Studies. International Economics said in a January 17 report.

Trump also noted Tuesday that his team was talking about a tariff of “around 25%” on Mexico and Canada.

He had made similar comments the day before, pointing out that levies on Mexico and Canada could take place as early as February.

“We are looking at 25% levies on Mexico and Canada because they are allowing large numbers of people” to cross the border, he said Monday.

During his 2024 election campaign, Trump threatened to impose tariffs of up to 60% on Chinese products. As recently as November, he called for “an additional 10% tariff” on China, according to a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated which countries would be subject to a 25% levy. These countries are Mexico and Canada.