China Will Ignore New Iranian Trade Sanctions; Promises to Retaliate on Tariffs

President Trump's trade war with China continued to heat up yesterday as the Commerce Department announced that the US will impose a 25% tariff on another $16 billion worth of Chinese goods starting August 23. China responded by announcing a 25% tariff on an equal amount of US goods that will go into effect the same day.

But China also said yesterday that they will ignore new US sanctions on Iran and continue to do business with them despite President Trump's warning that nations that trade with Iran will "NOT be doing business with the United States." However, under international law, China is within their rights to trade with Iran and Trump's warning is simply an attempt to strong-arm America's trading partners. China made it clear yesterday that they won't be bullied:

The Hill: "China's commercial cooperation with Iran is open and transparent, reasonable and fair, not violating any United Nations Security Council resolutions," the statement read, adding that "China's lawful rights should be protected."

China's decision on Iranian sanctions sets up another trade dispute which could complicate US/Chinese trade negotiations to end the trade war stand-off.

#china #trade #iran