President Donald Trump and his administration have stressed the importance of limiting the United States’ trade deficit. To combat the over one trillion-dollar trade deficit, President Trump has implemented tariffs with many countries contributing to the trade deficit — specifically China. 

Tariffs rates change and implementing them in China is not a one-size-fits-all approach. According to The New York Times, the new tariffs under Trump’s second term include steel, aluminum, auto, fentanyl, and reciprocal. There will be a 25% tariff on steel products, a 25% tariff on aluminum products, and a 25% tariff on cars and car parts. There will be a +20% increase on many goods as a “punishment for the flow of fentanyl into the United States.” This ranges from syringes and needles to wool sweaters. There is a 125% tariff on other goods to “reset” the trade balance between China and the United States. 

There have already been tariffs on certain products exported from China. Syringes and needles had a 100% tariff pre-2025, implemented in September 2024. Now, the syringes and needles are also getting a +20% “fentanyl” tariff and a +125% “reciprocal” tariff. There will be a 245% tariff rate on syringes and needles. “Toys” also are gaining a +20% fentanyl tariff and a +125% reciprocal tariff. Now, all items considered toys produced in China, and exported to the United States will have a 145% tariff. 

China has responded to these implementations. According to the Associated Press, Beijing plans to raise tariffs on U.S. goods from 84% to 125%. A Chinese Finance Minister stated the policy, “will become a joke in the history of the world economy…if the U.S. insists [on infringing] on China’s interests, China will resolutely counter and fight to the end.” China’s Commerce Ministry stated they would file another lawsuit with the World Trade Organization against the U.S.’s tariffs.

As Xi Jinping states, “There are no winners in a tariff war.” Especially an arbitrary war. Tariffs tend to be implemented during times of nationalism for profit. For example, after the United States’s independence from the British Empire, tariffs were implemented to fund the new government. Tariffs are also used to protect certain domestic industries. However, we are a globalized society. Isolationism through economics is not a way to improve domestic function. Instead, tariffs bring multilateral tension and domestic unrest.

The conversations between the Chinese and the American government have been riddled with tension, especially after the threat and eventual implementation of the tariffs. Instead of diplomacy building, there is tariff retribution. When the United States implements a tariff, the Chinese raise it, and the cycle continues, until it is paused or rescinded. Tariffs hurt multilateral diplomacy by encouraging officials to retaliate instead of communicating. Even when there is communication, it is not progressive. 

The consumers are the real victims of these wars. They are the ones paying the difference — not the country where the tariffs are implemented. There is no domestic industry being protected. Many industries are affected by the tariffs because of the import increase. There is market uncertainty with tariffs. The market uncertainty and retaliation make tariffs an unappealing economic concept. Instead of isolation, continued globalization and bilateral diplomacy is necessary for the United States, especially with a power like China, who we have deep economic ties with but strained political ones. This tariff war is likely to only further the divide between the United States and China.