China to halve retaliatory tariffs on hundreds of US goods worth about $75 billion

China on Thursday announced that it will halve tariffs on hundreds of U.S. goods worth about $75 billion. Retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. goods will be cut from 10% to 5%, and from 5% to 2.5% on others, according to a statement from China’s Ministry of Finance. The adjustments will take effect from 1:01 p.m on Feb. 14, it said, without specifying which time zone it was referring to.

The cuts apply to about $75 billion worth of imports from the U.S. that was slapped with tariffs on Sept. 1, 2019, according to a separate statement on the ministry’s website. After the cut, duties on U.S. crude will be reduced to 2.5%, from 5%, and the tariff on soybeans will be trimmed by 2.5%.

The statement on the Ministry of Finance website said the move was made in order to “advance the healthy and stable development of China-U.S. trade.” A separate article on the website noted the cut in tariffs was timed in conjunction with a U.S. decision in January to halve tariffs on Feb. 14 for $120 billion of Chinese goods — from 15% to 7.5%.