WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump revived the trade war against Beijing on Friday, ending an uneasy truce between the two largest economies with promises to sharply hike tariffs in a reprisal against China curbing its critical mineral exports.
The president unveiled additional levies of 100% on China's U.S.-bound exports, along with new export controls on "any and all critical software" by November 1, nine days before existing tariff relief is set to expire.
Trump also called into question the prospects for a previously announced meeting set for three weeks from now with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, saying on Truth Social that "now there seems to be no reason to do so."
"I haven't canceled," Trump later told reporters at the White House. "I would assume we might have it." Beijing has never confirmed the meeting.
The new trade steps were Trump's reaction to China dramatically expanding its rare earth element export controls. China dominates the market for such elements, which are essential to tech manufacturing.
"It was shocking," Trump said of China's steps, which did not specifically target Washington. "I thought it was very, very bad."
The actions signaled the biggest rupture in relations in six months between Beijing and Washington - the world's biggest factory and its biggest consumer. Many questioned whether an uneasy economic detente reached over the summer can survive.
It was a swift and dramatic response by Trump, a Republican who has wielded tariffs paid by U.S. importers against friends and foes. It could escalate a trade war that Washington and Beijing paused earlier this year after painstaking diplomacy.
Experts said restrictions on U.S. software shipments to China could be a massive blow to the country's tech industry, including cloud computing and artificial intelligence.
Trump also threatened new export controls on airplanes and airplane parts, and a person familiar with the matter said the administration was sketching out other possible targets.
Beijing has long called for Washington to abandon unilateral trade restrictions it says undermine global commerce.
MARKETS DIVE ON NEW THREATS
Trump's trade threats - delivered in a series of social media posts and a public back-and-forth with reporters - sent markets and relations between the world's largest economies into a spiral.
China produces over 90% of the world's processed rare earths and rare earth magnets. Many are vital materials in products ranging from electric vehicles to aircraft engines and military radars.