Ginseng fetches more in China when it is sold in boxes emblazoned with the stars and stripes of the American flag. That makes the prized medicinal root a fitting symbol for a trade skirmish that could disproportionately affect farming communities in the US heartland.
China’s tit-for-tat retaliation for Washington’s tariffs on steel and aluminium will affect roughly $3bn in American products, and comes as both sides prepare for the Trump administration’s threatened tariffs on high-tech Chinese manufacturing.
US trade promoters have warned that Chinese retaliation could hit large-volume US exports, especially soyabeans, grown in heartland states that voted for the New York real estate developer. Beijing’s more targeted tariffs are likely to have a similar effect, while hurting China far less in return.