China Rages Over U.S.–Taiwan Tariff Deal

Taiwan’s Premier Cho Jung-tai praised the country’s new trade deal with the U.S., calling it the “best tariff deal” enjoyed by countries that sell more to the U.S. than they import.

The agreement reduces U.S. tariffs on Taiwanese goods to 15% in exchange for $250 billion (€215.3 billion) in new U.S. tech-industry investments.

The Trump administration has targeted countries with large trade surpluses—those exporting more to the U.S. than they buy, Jenny McCall reported for Yahoo Finance.

China, however, strongly opposes the deal. Beijing views Taiwan as part of Chinese territory and has consistently resisted agreements it perceives as granting Taiwan sovereignty.

A Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, condemned the deal at a routine news briefing: “China always firmly opposes countries having diplomatic relations with China and China’s Taiwan region signing any agreement that carries sovereign connotations and an official nature with China’s Taiwan region.”

The agreement reduces U.S. tariffs on Taiwanese goods to 15% in exchange for $250 billion (€215.3 billion) in new U.S. tech-industry investments.

It is comparable to deals the EU and Japan reached after President Trump proposed sweeping tariffs on many of Washington’s trading partners.

“Taiwan has successfully obtained 15% in tariffs with no added fees,” said Premier Cho. The Trump administration initially set the tariff on Taiwanese goods at 32% but later reduced it to 20%.