China-US automobile, cotton, meat and fish trade fall amid tariff war
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China has significantly slashed much of its imports from the United States in March, as it fights back against Trump's tariffs.
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A made in China sticker is displayed on a hat at a store in Chinatown in San Francisco, Friday, April 18, 2025 (AP)
China has sharply cut imports of key US goods, including passenger cars and cotton, hitting their lowest levels in years as the tariff war between Washington and Beijing intensifies, RIA Novosti reported, citing Chinese customs data.
Automobile imports witness sharp decline
Chinese importers significantly scaled back purchases of US passenger cars in March, slashing imports by 2.8 times to just $155.1 million, marking the lowest monthly import value since early 2015, according to available customs data, with no earlier figures publicly accessible.
The decline pushed the US to fifth place among China's top auto suppliers, down from fourth last year.
Japan now leads with $526.9 million in car exports to China, jumping two spots from the previous year, followed by Germany at $405.1 million, while the United Kingdom fell to third place with $360.4 million in shipments after previously holding the top position.
China's imports of US trucks plummeted 5.7-fold to just $6.9 million, while purchases of American-made auto parts also dropped 1.5 times, falling to $77.8 million.
US cotton fiber imports take a hit
Additionally, China slashed its imports of cotton fiber from the United States by nearly twelvefold to $27.7 million in March, even though the US had been one of the top 10 revenue sources for American exporters in the previous year, according to RIA Novosti's calculations based on Chinese customs data.
According to the data, China's imports of chemical threads dropped by 40% to $9.1 million, while purchases of chemical fibers declined by 16% to $5.7 million, and imports of cotton wool, felt, and non-woven materials fell by 25% to $11.6 million.
China's imports of special fabrics, such as those with embroidery, experienced a significant decline, dropping by about 14 times to just $94,000, while knitted fabrics also saw a sharp reduction, falling to $47,000, and carpets decreased by 1.7 times to $358,000, alongside prepared or coated fabrics, which dipped by 12% to $3.5 million, culminating in an overall 6.3-fold drop in all fabric supplies from the US to China in March of this year, totaling only $58.2 million.
China reduces meat, fish imports
Amid the escalation of the trade war between the two countries, China reduced imports of meat and fish from the US in March.
With meat supplies experiencing a 29% year-on-year decrease to $165.5 million, poultry imports seeing a nearly sixfold decline to $6.3 million, and pork imports dropping 20% to $9.9 million, the overall trend reflects significant reductions across all major categories.
Supplies of fish and sea products fell by 15% to $73.3 million, while prawn imports dropped by more than 30% to $18.9 million, reflecting a broader decline in seafood imports.
