US says dozens of countries helped China dodge Trump's tariffs

What the report says

The White House has said in a new report that more than 40 countries have helped China avoid higher US tariffs by routing goods through places with lower import duties. The countries named include Canada, India, Mexico, Japan and South Korea. The report argues that this transshipping practice has allowed China to dodge tens of billions of dollars in levies, with White House trade adviser Peter Navarro saying it has cost American jobs and revenue.

The BBC reported that China’s embassy in Washington rejected the US criticism, saying trade wars have no winners and objecting to unilateral actions affecting third parties. The report also says the US has been using artificial intelligence tools to identify suspected transshipment routes. It describes the issue as a major enforcement challenge tied to cargo being repackaged or moved through third countries before reaching the final market.

The timing matters because the findings come amid ongoing US-China sanctions and ahead of a planned meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Washington. The BBC said the report is likely to sharpen one of the main disputes between the two sides as they continue to trade restrictions and countermeasures. More broadly, transshipping is a long-recognized customs issue in global trade, but the White House is presenting it as part of a wider effort to curb tariff evasion.