Source: Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 9/24/18


The United States and China today activated new sets of tariffs on each other in an escalating trade war that promises no resolution in the immediate future. China on Saturday cancelled planned trade talks with the United States, according to multiple media reports.  

Washington has placed a 10 percent tax of $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. China  retaliatedwith tariffs of 5 to 10 percent on $60 billion worth U.S. products, including some meat products.

President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on an additional $267 billion worth of Chinese imports if Beijing retaliated. That would mark a third round of U.S. tariffs on China, and, at a total of $517 billion, cover all products that the U.S. imports from

China.
Forecasters now are predicting the trade war could reduce global economic growth through 2020.

Fitch Ratings trimmed its forecast for next year’s Chinese economic growth by 0.2 percentage points to 6.1 percent, and next year’s global economic growth by 0.1 percentage points to 3.1 percent.

"The trade war is now a reality," Fitch Chief Economist Brian Coulton said in a news release. "The recently announced imposition of US tariffs on a further USD200 billion of imports from China will have a material impact on global growth and, even though we have now included the 25% tariff shock in our GEO baseline, the downside risks to our global growth forecasts have also increased."

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.