Steel to soybeans: A timeline of the US-China trade war

Here’s a timeline of the escalating trade tensions between the US and China

Years of trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies have taken a turn for the worse since the start of 2018. Now they threaten to boil over into higher levies on hundreds of billions of dollars in bilateral trade.

US President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping shake hands after making joint statements at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Reuters file photo)

The US and China have complained to the World Trade Organization about each other more than any other countries, with Beijing issuing 11 complaints against its biggest trading partner since joining the WTO in 2001, and Washington making 22 complaints.

Even with some of these complaints still outstanding, the pair are planning more, and an array of unilateral tariffs covering everything from agricultural produce to aircraft.

Here’s a timeline of major developments this year:

--With assistance from Miao Han