China is requesting the U.S. compensate lost trade under President Donald Trump's proposed steel and aluminum tariffs, and threatened to set $3 billion worth of tariffs on U.S. imports, according to Bloomberg.
Here are seven things to know about the tariffs.
1. China's request that the U.S. provide compensation for trade lost because of the president's policy could be a precursor to a dispute at the World Trade Organization between China and the U.S., the report states.
2. China submitted two fillings to the WTO March 26, arguing the U.S. tariffs are safeguard measures rather than national security protections, as presented by the U.S. Safeguard measures temporarily restrict trade to shield domestic manufacturers.
3. China also threatened to impose more than $3 billion in tariffs on U.S. agricultural, steel and aluminum goods, according to Bloomberg. While China's U.S. ambassador said the country doesn't want a trade war, it's considering all options.
4. U.S. tariffs on China could affect an estimated $689 million worth of Chinese steel and aluminum exports, the Peterson Institute for International Economics predicts.
5. China may ask the WTO to step in to mediate the dispute in a formal proceeding should the U.S. dismiss China's safeguard argument.
6. President Trump is seeking a $100 billion decrease in the nation's trade shortfall with China in 2018, according to a separate Bloomberg report. A White House trade adviser told Bloomberg Radio March 26 the president is also requesting action on intellectual property.
7. Of the tariffs, Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin said, "China has sought to gain access to intellectual property and cutting-edge technology developed by U.S. businesses through such wrongful practices as systemic, government-driven investment in U.S. companies, unreasonable requirements and limiting restrictions intended to pressure U.S. firms, and cyber-enabled intrusions. This conduct threatens our national interests, undermines the value of U.S. investments and technology, weakens the global competitiveness of our firms, and harms American workers."