U.S. Readies to Slap Duties on $16 Billion of Chinese Goods

The U.S. said it will begin imposing 25 percent duties on an additional $16 billion in Chinese imports in two weeks, escalating a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. Customs will begin collecting the duties on 279 product lines, down from 284 items on the initial list, as of Aug. 23, the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office said in an emailed statement on Tuesday. The new list covers products ranging from motorcycles to steam turbines and railway cars. China’s trade surplus with the U.S. stood at $28.1 billion, close to the record-high in June, data released Wednesday showed.