U.S. imposes first Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods
On 6 July 2018 the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative under Robert Lighthizer began imposing 25% tariffs on about $34 billion of Chinese imports after its Section 301 investigation into Chinese trade practices. China retaliated with tariffs on the same value of U.S. goods, and the administration then moved to target a further $200 billion of imports.
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On 6 July 2018 the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative under Robert Lighthizer began imposing 25% tariffs on about $34 billion of Chinese imports after its Section 301 investigation into Chinese trade practices. China retaliated with tariffs on the same value of U.S. goods, and the administration then moved to target a further $200 billion of imports.
Who was responsible
Contribution type and responsibility level for each recorded actor — not sole-author shorthand.
Robert Lighthizer
PersonDirect responsibility
verified
U.S. imposes first Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods. Actor role on this event; contribution size permanently_blocked (no sourced fraction). Contribution size is permanently_blocked (no sourced fraction); provisional 0.4 stored because contributions.size is NOT NULL.
What changed
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No public driver impacts are listed for this fact.
Evidence
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- 1.ustr.govchecked 2026-10-15 GET 200, final URL = original (no non-trivial redirect), claim in text: 301+china+tariff · verified
Causal path
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No causal path is recorded: this fact is not linked to a driver.
Cite this page
Factrail. (2026). U.S. imposes first Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods. Factrail. https://factrail.ai/facts/lighthizer-section-301-china-tariffs-2018-07-06
https://factrail.ai/facts/lighthizer-section-301-china-tariffs-2018-07-06
Accessed 16 October 2026.
By the Factrail desk · Method: how we source and score · Last reviewed
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