MOC asks U.S. to abandon 'reciprocal tariffs'

China has called on the United States to decisively correct its mistake and fully abandon the erroneous approach of imposing "reciprocal tariffs", the Ministry of Commerce said on Sunday.

The ministry released a statement after the U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced in an updated guidance on Saturday (U.S. time) that the U.S. government has exempted smartphones, computers and other electronic products from its "reciprocal tariffs".

"We have noted that this marks the second adjustment the U.S. has made to its policy since it postponed the imposition of high 'reciprocal tariffs' on certain trading partners on April 10.

This can be seen as a small step toward correcting its erroneous unilateral practice of 'reciprocal tariffs'," said a spokesperson for the ministry.

Urging the U.S. to heed the rational voices of the international community and domestic stakeholders, the spokesperson said China is calling on Washington to return to the right path of resolving differences through mutual respect and equal dialogue.

Since its introduction on April 2, the "reciprocal tariffs" policy has failed to address any of the U.S.' own problems, the spokesperson added.

On the contrary, it has seriously disrupted the international economic and trade order, interfered with normal business operations and daily consumption, and ultimately harmed other countries without bringing any real benefit to the U.S. itself, according to the ministry.