China extends tariff exemptions on certain U.S. goods until Feb. 28, 2025

Beijing: China will continue to exempt certain U.S. goods from additional tariffs until the end of February next year, the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council said this week.

According to a statement issued in April, these items from the United States were excluded from the tariff countermeasures against the U.S. Section 301 measures until Nov. 30, 2024.

After the extension, the exemption will last until Feb. 28, 2025, the commission said in a statement.

The decision, which was announced by the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council (the Chinese executive), comes days after US President-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose additional 10 percent tariffs on Chinese goods until Beijing halted the entry of fentanyl into the US. However, this latest renewal is significantly shorter than the previous one.

In April, the Tariff Commission announced that it would extend the exemption for 6 months and 29 days, while in this case the duration will be 2 months and 27 days.

The extension will allow the import of key products such as rare earth elements, gold ore and some appliances and chemicals without additional tariffs until the end of February, just over a month after Trump returns to the presidency.

Trump’s first term, between 2017-2021, was marked by a trade war with China. The exemption list was announced in May 2019, when China imposed additional levies of up to 25 percent, worth some $60 billion, on products imported from the US in response to a tariff hike ordered by Trump on some $200 billion worth of Chinese goods.