“China made the wrong move. They panicked – the only thing that can’t happen in this situation,” US President Donald Trump wrote on the social network Truth Social on April 4.

The comments came shortly after China imposed retaliatory tariffs on US goods.

China’s Ministry of Finance announced yesterday that Beijing will impose an additional 34% tariff on all US goods starting April 10. This tariff is similar to the one the US imposed on Chinese goods that took effect on April 9.

China also tightened controls on exports of rare earth minerals including gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium to the US from April 4.

China said the decision was aimed at “more effectively safeguarding national security and interests, and fulfilling international obligations such as non-proliferation of nuclear weapons production”.

Earlier, Beijing urged Washington to “immediately” lift tariffs, and vowed to take decisive action to protect national interests. “China urges the US to properly resolve differences with its trading partners through equal dialogue,” the Chinese Ministry of Commerce stressed.

President Trump announced a new tax policy on more than 180 trading partners on April 2. Accordingly, the US will impose an additional 34% tax on Chinese goods. This tax rate, combined with the current 20% tax rate, will raise the actual tariff on Chinese goods to 54%.

Mr. Trump described the new policy as reshaping the US trade relationship with global partners. Despite the fact that tariffs have negatively impacted the US economy, Mr. Trump still asserted that this policy will bring manufacturing back to the country, making America rich again.

In a statement yesterday, he affirmed that “there will never be a change in policy”. “I want to tell investors who are coming to the US that my policy will not change. This is a great time to be richer than ever”, he commented.