Tariffs only accelerate China's self-reliance in high-tech sector

In a perilous move to reshape international trade dynamics, the US administration has escalated tariffs on Chinese imports from 10 percent to 20 percent as of March 4, intensifying economic tensions between the world's two largest economies. This policy shift has prompted China to implement calculated retaliatory measures, including 10-15 percent tariffs on more than $20 billion worth of US agricultural goods.

The US' tariff policy is essentially a part of Trump's "America First" strategy, which, among other things, is aimed at containing China's technological advancement. The core goal of the US administration is to undermine China's competitiveness in key sectors and maintain the US' hegemony in high-tech, by raising trade barriers and restricting the flow of technology.

For instance, in the semiconductor sector, the US Department of Commerce added 140 Chinese entities to its export control list, restricting key chip components like high-bandwidth memory from being exported to China, in order to contain the advancement of China's semiconductor industry. In the renewable energy sector, the Office of the US Trade Representative raised the tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs) from 25 percent to 100 percent, in a bid to reduce China's market share in the US and create space for domestic EV industries, reflecting the US' fear of China's leading position in renewable energy technologies.