Hong Kong braces for turbulence as US-China trade war turns ugly with Donald Trump raising tariffs on Chinese exports

Federation of Hong Kong Industries chairman expects longer road ahead in tit-for-tat row between superpowers before deal is reached

Industry insider says increased tariffs may be too big to swallow for Hong Kong factories across the border

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A display showing the share index at the Hong Kong stock exchange on Monday. Photo: AP

Published: 1:23pm, 6 May 2019Updated: 11:28pm, 6 May 2019

Hong Kong has braced itself for more turbulence as US President Donald Trump again raised punitive tariffs on Chinese exports in an unexpected move on Monday, marking an ugly turn in the US-China trade war.

In an abrupt announcement on Twitter just after midnight on Sunday, Hong Kong time, Trump said tariffs on US$200 billion of imports from China would be increased to 25 per cent from 10 per cent, while threatening to impose the same levies on other Chinese exports to America totalling about US$350 billion.

The move came just days before top Chinese officials were set to arrive in Washington for another round of trade talks to end a bilateral war of tit-for-tat tariffs.

Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Edward Yau Tang-wah, told the Post it was too early to tell whether the latest threats were negotiation tactics or not.

“But the recent improvement in business sentiment was reversed today,” he said. He added that China’s exports to the US through Hong Kong accounted for 7 per cent of the city’s total in 2018.

Industry representatives in Hong Kong expressed dismay over the tough road ahead.

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