On August 12, 2025, the Ministry of Finance published a State Council Tariff Commission (SCTC) announcement adjusting additional tariff measures first issued on April 4, 2025. According to SCTC Announcement No. 8 of 2025, the suspension of the 24 per cent additional tariffs on U.S. commodities will be extended for another 90 days, effective from August 12, 2025, at 12:01 PM. The 10 per cent additional ad valorem tariff rate will remain unchanged, keeping tariff levels consistent with those applied between May 12 and August 11, 2025.
The Ministry of Commerce also released a joint statement from the China-U.S. Stockholm Economic and Trade Talks on August 12, confirming that China will take or maintain necessary actions to suspend or eliminate non-tariff measures against the United States, in line with the consensus reached during trade talks in Geneva in May 2025. The White House issued the same joint statement.
On April 4, 2025, the SCTC announced retaliatory tariffs of 34 per cent on all U.S. goods, which came into effect on April 10, 2025. Following trade negotiations in Geneva, China and the United States issued a joint statement on May 12, 2025, that suspended 24 per cent of the tariffs for 90 days starting May 14, 2025, while retaining the remaining 10 per cent.
Earlier in March 2025, the SCTC imposed retaliatory tariffs ranging from 10 to 15 per cent on 740 U.S. agricultural commodities. These measures were introduced in response to U.S. tariffs on Chinese exports, linked to disputes over fentanyl precursor chemicals. Certain U.S. agricultural products also remain subject to Section 301 retaliatory tariffs, for which importers can request exclusions until October 30, 2025, as well as Section 232 tariffs.
The SCTC stated: "To implement the consensus reached during the China-U.S. economic and trade talks, and in accordance with the Tariff Law of the People's Republic of China, the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China, the Foreign Trade Law of the People's Republic of China, and other laws and regulations, as well as basic principles of international law, and with the approval of the State Council, effective at 12:01 PM on August 12, 2025, the additional tariff measures outlined in the 'Announcement of the State Council Tariff Commission on Additional Tariffs on Commodities Imported from the United States' (SCTC Announcement No. 4 of 2025) will be adjusted. The 24 per cent additional tariff rate on commodities imported from the United States will continue to be suspended for 90 days, while the 10 per cent additional tariff rate will remain."
Growers and exporters in both countries remain attentive to tariff adjustments, as agricultural commodities continue to be included in the scope of these trade measures.
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