High tariffs imposed by the U.S. "smear" China's name: China commerce ministry

[February 08, 2017]  BEIJING (Reuters) - High tariff rates imposed by the United States against Chinese products merely blacken China's name without achieving anything else, an official from the Ministry of Commerce said on Wednesday, according to state media.

"Aside from smearing China's name, the tariffs are meaningless," said Wang Hejun, head of the trade remedy and investigation bureau at China's Ministry of Commerce, according to China News Service.

Targeted products include steel, chemicals and solar panels but Wang said that many of the tariffs imposed do not conform with World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules.

China is expecting even tougher tariffs and more trade disputes in 2017, Wang said, according to Chinese state radio, adding that China is "mentally prepared for it".

A worker measures a newly-made steel block at a factory of Dongbei Special Steel Group Co., Ltd., in Dalian, Liaoning province, China, October 13, 2015. REUTERS/China

U.S. anti-dumping investigations have flouted WTO rules by ignoring evidence offered by Chinese companies and have treated them unfairly because of their state-owned enterprise status, Wang said on Saturday.

(Reporting by Sue-Lin Wong; Editing by Nick Macfie)

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