Ministry critical of latest US tariff threat

A White House statement on Tuesday about tariffs on China's exports clearly runs against the consensus reached recently by the two countries in Washington, a Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said.

The White House statement renewed the US threat to place 25 percent tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods, and it said it will target the tariffs on cutting-edge technologies, the Associated Press reported.

The "tactical statement" issued by the White House is surprising but not beyond expectation, the unnamed Chinese spokesperson said in a written statement issued late Tuesday.