China is hitting Hollywood amid President Trump’s escalating trade war, saying it plans on cutting back on the number of American movie titles it allows into the country.
“We will follow market rules, respect the audience’s choices, and moderately reduce the number of American films imported,” the China Film Administration, which regulates the film and TV industries in the country, said Thursday.
“The wrong move by the US government to abuse tariffs on China will inevitably further reduce the domestic audience’s favorability towards American films,” a spokesperson for the China Film Administration said in a translated statement on its website.
US stocks retreat after Trump’s tariff pause rallied investors
For decades, China has instituted strict quotas on the number of foreign films released, limiting the number to less than three dozen over the years as part of a revenue-sharing agreement.
Beijing’s move to further curb Hollywood film imports came a day after Trump increased import taxes on China to 125 percent. Trump announced a 90-day pause on tariffs for the U.S.’s other foreign trading partners.
Financial markets were rattled when Trump last week unveiled sweeping tariffs on most trading partners. Trump sharply criticized China for issuing a reciprocal 34 percent tax on U.S. goods in response to his administration’s tariffs.
On Thursday, China’s Foreign Ministry said the country is open to talks, but said the U.S. must “show an attitude of equality, respect and reciprocity” in negotiations.
