Beijing, Nov 10 (EFE).- China activated this Monday the measures included in the truce with the United States, which range from the suspension of tariffs and port fees to the strengthening of controls over fentanyl precursors, within the framework of the consensus agreed upon this month between both countries. According to what was announced last Wednesday by the Tariff Commission of the State Council (Chinese Executive), the decision seeks to implement the results of the agreements reached between the presidents of China and the United States, Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, during their meeting in the South Korean city of Busan. During this period, an additional 10% tariff will be maintained on certain US goods, although Beijing has not specified which ones. The suspension extends for twelve months the moratorium on the so-called 'reciprocal tariffs' that China had announced as a response to the tariffs imposed by Washington within the framework of the trade war. In parallel, the United States reduced its average tariffs on Chinese products from 57% to 47%, while Beijing committed to eliminating some tariffs of up to 15% on US agricultural and energy products starting today. The truce, which will last for one year, also contemplates the resumption of bilateral agricultural trade and the relaxation of Chinese controls on the export of strategic materials such as rare earths, also confirmed by Beijing in recent months. Port fees, also suspended. Also this Monday, the suspension of port fees that China and the United States had imposed on each other in October, during the last commercial escalation prior to the truce sealed by both governments, came into force. As announced then by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, the tariffs will be inoperative for a year, coinciding with the withdrawal by Washington of its investigations against the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors of the Asian country. The so-called 'special port fees' were adopted in October as reciprocal measures and taxed ships of ownership, operation or flag of the other country, which had increased the cost of maritime transport and generated concern in the sector due to the increase in logistics costs. Control of fentanyl precursors. Also from today, China will strengthen controls on the export of chemical products that can be used in the manufacture of synthetic drugs, especially fentanyl, following Beijing's decision to include the United States, Mexico and Canada in the list of countries for which prior shipping licenses will be mandatory. The measure, announced this same Monday by the Ministry of Commerce, also incorporates a specific catalog of 13 chemical substances subject to special control for these three countries, including several piperidine derivatives, compounds used in the synthesis of opioids. The Executive justified the adjustment as part of the efforts to 'improve the management of the export of chemical substances susceptible to diversion' towards illicit uses. Until now, Beijing had only applied similar controls to Burma, Laos and Afghanistan, destinations considered high risk for the diversion of precursors. At the summit in Busan, Xi and Trump agreed to intensify cooperation to combat fentanyl trafficking, a synthetic opioid responsible for tens of thousands of deaths annually in the United States, which, according to Washington, is manufactured by Mexican cartels from precursors originating in China.
