TESLA AND FARM EQUIPMENT FIRMS
China also announced 10 per cent tariffs on imports of US farm equipment that could impact firms such as Caterpillar, Deere & Co and AGCO, as well as a small number of trucks and big-engine sedans shipped to China from the United States.
That could apply to Elon Musk’s Cybertruck, a niche offering that Tesla has been promoting in China, as it awaits regulatory clearance to begin sales.
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology designated the Cybertruck as a “passenger car” in a posting in December that was quickly deleted.
If the Cybertruck was designated as an electric truck, Tesla would face a 10 per cent tariff on any future imports from its factory in Texas. Tesla had no immediate comment.
The new tariffs on US products will start on Feb 10, the ministry said.
The announcements made on Tuesday ramped up trade restrictions between Beijing and Washington that had been largely limited to the tech sector under the administration of former US president Joe Biden, which sought to restrict China’s access to high-end semiconductors.
China said in December it had launched an investigation into Nvidia over a suspected violation of the country’s anti-monopoly law, a probe widely seen as a retaliatory shot against Washington’s latest curbs on the Chinese chip sector.
Intel’s products sold in China were also called for a security review late last year by an influential Chinese industry group.
