The Chinese finance ministry announced on Thursday that on 1 July it would lower tariffs on 1449 consumer goods, including clothing and footwear, household appliances, food and cosmetics, to stimulate imports, to continue opening the economy and increase its competitiveness.
Customs duties on 1449 goods imported to China from most-favored nation (MFN) countries will be reduced on average from 15.7 to 6.9 percent, hence by more than half, the Finance Department has reported.
MFUs apply countries belonging to the World Trade Organization (WTO), except for situations related to the preferential treatment of developing countries, customs unions or regional free trade agreements.
The reduction of duties is in line with earlier announcements of Chinese President Xi Jinping and promises made by Beijing to international trading partners, including the US, with which China is negotiating in search of a settlement in connection with growing tensions in trade.
Duties for clothing, footwear, headgear, kitchen equipment and sports accessories will be reduced by more than half – an average of 15.9 to 7.1 percent. Rates for household appliances, including washing machines and refrigerators, will fall from 20.5 to 8 percent.
The tariff reduction announced by the Ministry of Finance concerns a much larger spectrum of goods than the previous one. In December of last year tariffs fell on nearly 200 products imported into China, including some types of food, dietary supplements and medicines.
According to earlier announcements of the Ministry of Finance, from 1 July also import tariffs for cars will be reduced (from 20-25 to 15 percent) and car parts (from 8-25 to 6 percent).
