US-China Trade Battle Heats Up: China Moves Against American Corporations

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On Tuesday, China unveiled a series of measures targeting U.S. businesses, including Google, farm equipment makers, and the owner of Calvin Klein, shortly after additional U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods came into effect.

These actions followed Beijing’s imposition of tariffs on U.S. products like coal and oil in retaliation to the new U.S. duties on Chinese imports, escalating trade tensions between the two largest global economies. China’s Ministry of Commerce placed PVH Corp, the parent company of brands such as Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, along with U.S. biotech firm Illumina, on its "unreliable entity" list.

The ministry accused these companies of taking "discriminatory measures" against Chinese firms, damaging the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese businesses. Companies added to this blacklist could face fines, sanctions, trade freezes, and even the revocation of work permits for foreign staff.

Additionally, China’s State Administration of Market Regulation stated that Google was being investigated for suspected violations of the country’s anti-monopoly law, though further details on the probe were not provided. Despite having its search engine blocked in China, Google collaborates with local partners like advertisers in the country.

PVH had already faced scrutiny from Chinese regulators over alleged misconduct related to the Xinjiang region.

Furthermore, China’s Finance Ministry announced that 10% tariffs on farm equipment and certain automobiles would be implemented on February 10, affecting U.S. companies like Caterpillar and Deere & Co.

Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author.