Tariffs live: Asian markets fall as Trump confirms China will face 104% levy overnight

The White House has confirmed China will be hit with a 104 per cent tariff rate from 12:01am ET on Wednesday. Donald Trump’s press secretary confirmed that the measures will come into place after Beijing did not lift its retaliatory tariffs on US goods by a Tuesday noon deadline. Earlier, the US president threatened to impose an extra 50 per cent levy on top of the existing 54 per cent tariff on Chinese imports, bringing the total levies on Chinese products imported to the US to over 100 per cent.

The Chinese foreign ministry vowed its country would “fight till the end” , amid reports it is preparing for a US imports block, as it accused America of “typical unilateralism and protectionist economic bullying”. It is not yet clear what counter-measures Beijing is planning to impose, although the BBC reported, citing state media, that the US agricultural sector could be impacted, including a potential total ban on poultry..