China announces tariffs on food products from Canada
China said Saturday it would impose tariffs on Canadian food imports in retaliation for tariffs imposed on Beijing last year by Ottawa.
China’s Commerce Ministry said it would impose 100% tariffs on Canadian imports of rapeseed oil, oilcake and peas, and 25% on aquatic products and pork.
The new fees will go into effect on March 20, according to the Chinese Commerce Ministry.
Last August, Canada imposed customs duties on imports of electric cars from China, in line with US measures to limit the flow of these products, supported by the Chinese state, into North American markets.
Canadian tariffs at the time also included steel and aluminum imports from China.
The Chinese Commerce Ministry confirmed that Beijing’s investigation into anti-discrimination concluded that Canada’s restrictive measures against some Chinese products disrupted the normal trade order and harmed the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.
The Commerce Ministry spokesman stressed that China urges Canada to immediately correct its practices, lift its restrictive measures, and eliminate their negative consequences.
Canada is a major producer of rapeseed oil, some forms of which are used in cooking and others in industry.
China is traditionally one of the world’s largest consumers of the oil.
Relations between Canada and China have been tensed for years after Ottawa arrested a senior Huawei official in 2018, prompting Beijing to detain two Canadian citizens.
The new tariffs come as Ottawa and Beijing face growing trade tensions with the administration of US President Donald Trump, who is imposing additional trade tariffs on countries including China and Canada.
