Early yesterday, Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of countries, including a massive 104 per cent duty on Chinese goods, became effective. In retaliation to the tariff increase on Chinese imports, China is considering a ban on all US films reported The independent
This comes after two widely followed bloggers with links to the local authorities shared identical lists of measures that could be introduced by Chinese authorities in response. These include “reducing or banning the import of US films.”
The bloggers, Liu Hong, a senior editor at the Xinhua News Agency, and Ren Yi, grandson of former Guangdong Province Communist Party chief Ren Zhongyi, both attributed the plans to sources familiar with the Chinese state’s planning.
In 2024, US films grossed around $585 million in China. This represents around 3.5 per cent of China’s total $17.71 billion box office. A significant proportion of that was attributable to the success of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which made $132 million in China. The total US and Canada domestic box office for the same period was around $8.56 billion.
The US is set to increase the initial tariff of 54 percent on Chinese imports to 104 percent. The Chinese foreign ministry has vowed to fight this battle to the end and is currently preparing for a US imports block. The impact of the flim industry could also spread to other sectors as China is reportly considering a total ban on poultry as well.
The film sector represents a sizeable US trade surplus with China, as Chinese films do not tend to be as popular overseas. However, last month, some American-based Chinese campaigned for animated hit Ne Zha 2 to get an IMAX release in the US.
