US President Donald Trump has instructed officials to consider a further $100bn (£71.3bn) in tariffs against China, escalating a trade war with Beijing.

The tariffs would be in addition to the $50bn worth of tariffs already proposed on hundreds of Chinese imports.

The country’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement that it would “take new comprehensive measures to safeguard the country’s interests if the United States sticks to its protectionist behavior.”

The latest US proposal came in retaliation to China’s tariffs on 106 key US products.

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