China exempts 16 American products from additional tariffs

Beijing has exempted 16 types of US-made goods from additional tariffs that were introduced as a retaliatory measure after Washington raised duties on a number of Chinese products.

The goods that will avoid additional tariffs include food for livestock, cancer drugs and some industrial lubricants, according to a statement from the State Council Tariff Commission posted on the Ministry of Finance’s website on Wednesday. The exemption will come into force on September 17 and will be valid for a year.

The Commission issued two separate tariff exemption lists. The first includes fish food for livestock, shrimp and prawn seedlings, and cancer drugs, along with a clarification that tariffs already imposed on these items will be refunded. Companies are invited to apply to customs within six months to get a refund.

Products on the second list include whey food for livestock and lubricating base oil. Tariffs already imposed on these items are deemed non-refundable.

Beijing’s announcement comes as China and the US get ready to meet in Washington in October for the next round of talks regarding the ongoing trade and tariff dispute.

Washington and Beijing recently exchanged tariff hikes on billions of dollars’ worth of each other’s goods. The latest escalation took place at the beginning of August, when US President Donald Trump began the gradual imposition of tariffs on another $300 billion of Chinese imports. Beijing retaliated with levies targeting around $30 billion-worth of US imports, mostly affecting products that are sensitive for the US agricultural sector.

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