China offers total tariff relief for Africa
Beijing said on Wednesday that it was ready to remove tariffs for all 53 African countries with which it shares diplomatic relations, following a meeting between its foreign minister and African officials in central China.
The move comes amid an ongoing trade war between Washington and Beijing, Africa's largest bilateral trade partner, and is a clear counterpoint to US President Donald Trump's new tariff regime that could hit some African nations with rates as high as 50%.
'We call on all countries, the United States in particular, to return to the right track of resolving trade disputes through consultation,' a statement published by the Chinese foreign ministry said.
African countries are also facing uncertainty over the future of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, a 25-year-old preferential trade program with the US that is set to expire in September.
Eswatini, the only African country that supports Taiwan — which Beijing considers a breakaway province — would be left out of any new tariff agreement. The plan is an expansion of China rolling out a zero-tariff treatment to 43 of the world's least-developed countries, mostly on the continent, last year.
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