Chinese importers are preparing applications for the abolition of import tariffs levied on more than 700 US products during the Sino-US trade war.

Last week, the Ministry of Finance of China published a list of goods for which tariff refusals may be granted. Rates can be charged on American beef, pork and soybeans.

“We are preparing our application, we will soon submit our materials. This is good news for us, ”said Shi Lei, meat import manager at Beijing Hopewise, a Chinese company.

Last month, amid growing concerns about the cost of a protracted trade war in an already slowing economy, Beijing said it would launch a tariff abandonment program.

"The rejection of import tariffs is a signal that China does not want to cause wider conflicts with the United States, and sends a message that the process of opening the country is still ongoing," said Ne Wen, an economist at Hwabao Trust.

Applicants must submit an application for these waivers of tariffs from June 3 to July 5. A second batch of benefits will be provided in respect of tariffs that were imposed on goods worth $ 60 billion last September.

The tariff cancellation policy, "is mainly aimed at firms that bought and booked American soy cargo earlier during the ceasefire, mainly at state-owned firms to ease their burden," a source from a Chinese state-owned enterprise said on condition of anonymity.