China and US in new trade dispute 中美陷入新贸易纠纷

China has launched an "anti-dumping and anti-subsidy" probe into imports of some US car products and chicken meat.

中国针对美国进口的汽车和鸡肉进行反倾销和反补贴调查。

The US has accused China of keeping the yuan artificially high

The Commerce Ministry¹ said there were concerns the US imports had "dealt a blow to domestic industries".

It comes a day after the US imposed tariffs²（关税） on Chinese tyre imports in order "to remedy（治疗，补救） a market disruption caused by a surge（巨涌，汹涌） in tyre imports".

The case is the latest in a series of recent trade disputes between China and the US.

"In line with national laws and World Trade Organisation³ rules, the commerce ministry has started an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy examination of some imported US car products and chicken meat," the Chinese authorities said in a statement.

China has called the tyre move by US President Barack Obama "protectionist".

The White House announced duties of an additional 35% on Chinese-made tyres for one year, followed by tariffs of 30% and 25% in the following two years.

While Washington has long accused China of trade protectionism, the US is also unhappy at the high volume of Chinese exports to America, accusing Beijing of deliberately⁴ keeping the yuan undervalued to make its exports artificially cheap.

The US trade deficit⁵（贸易逆差） with China totalled $103bn (£63bn) in the first half of 2009, down 13% from the same period last year.