This is what happened the last time Trump and China had a trade war

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Levied a 10 per cent tariff on imported Chinese products.

The government said it would introduce tariffs of 15 per cent on coal, LNG and 10 per cent on crude oil and farm equipment as soon as Mr Trump's extra tariff on Chinese imports comes into effect.

The tariffs on US exports that have been targeted begin on 10 February, giving Washington and Beijing a chance to work out an agreement to stop a trade war similar to the one seen during the early days of Mr Trump's presidency.

China's been advising President Trump to hold off on increasing tariffs on about $400 billion (£322bn) worth of goods the US buys from China every year, advocating for talks while warning that they'll adopt "counter measures" if he proceeds.

The last time Trump started a trade war with China over China's big trade surplus from back in 2018, it sent the world economy into a spin as global trade chains suffered due to matching tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of goods.

In July 2018, the United States revealed plans for tariffs of 10 per cent on $200bn (£161bn) worth of Chinese imports, which a month later were increased to 25 per cent.

The government retaliated with a 25 per cent tariff on over 500 goods imported from the US with a value match.

G'day Trumpton, by the end of August, he imposed another 25 per cent tariff on about sixteen billion bucks on loads of Chinese goods, and China responded by sayin' they'd be slappin' 25 per cent levies on bourbon, orange juice, and Harley-Davidson motorbikes.

The 10 per cent tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports came into effect late in September, with a plan to raise it to 25 per cent from January 1, 2019. China also imposed a tariff of 10 per cent on $60 billion worth of US goods.

On 1 December 2019, the US and China agreed to a 90-day freeze on new tariffs, as Mr Trump deferred a 1 January tariff increase. With months of trade negotiations breaking down, Mr Trump announced a 10 per cent tariff on $300 billion worth of Chinese imports, with a value of about $241 billion.

China fixed the row in 2020 by agreeing to spend an extra $200 billion a year on US goods, but the plan was put on the backburner due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its annual trade deficit has since blown out to $361 billion, according to Chinese customs data released last month.

President Trump suspended the the 25 per cent tariffs on imports from Mexico on Monday but maintained them on China due to the fentanyl crisis.

"China hopes to stop sending us fentanyl, and if they don't, the tariffs are likely to go up significantly," he said on Monday.

China has declared fentanyl is America's problem and said it will contest the tariffs at the World Trade Organisation and implement other countermeasures, yet kept the door open for talks.

"The trade war is right at the beginning so the chances of further boycotts on imports are quite high," Oxford Economics said in a note as it lowered its forecast for China's economic growth.

The bloke, Trump, reckons the European Union with its 27 nations is the next one in his sights, but hasn't said when it's going to happen.

Australian English text: EU leaders at an informal summit in Brussels on Monday said they're prepared to take on the US if it imposes tariffs, but are also calling for calm heads and negotiation. The US is the EU's biggest trading and investment partner.

Mr Trump seemed to suggest that Britain, which withdrew from the EU in 2020, might get preferential treatment in terms of tariffs.

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