Chinese business community supports government countermeasures against U.S. protectionism, the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCIC) said in a statement.

The remarks came after the U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he had asked the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to consider "100 billion U.S. dollars of additional tariffs" on Chinese products.

Calling the U.S. move "irrational and erroneous", the CCIC urged the United States not to go further down the wrong path.

"We reaffirm that the U.S. 301 Section investigation violates rules of the World Trade Organization and impairs not only interests of both countries, but also the world economy at large," the statement said. The investigation and its report lack evidence and adopted double standards, the CCIC said.

Unilateral protectionism is folly considering the Sino-U.S. economic trade relationship is growing fast, it added.

China will fight "at any cost" and take "comprehensive countermeasures" if the United States continues its unilateral, protectionist practices, a spokesperson with the Ministry of Commerce said Friday.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Trade Representative office proposed imposing an additional 25 percent tariff on 50 billion dollars worth of imports from China, which drew strong opposition from business groups.

Hours after the release of the proposed tariff list, China struck back with a tariff plan of equal scale, with a list of U.S. products including soybeans, automobiles, aircraft and chemical products.

The date of implementation will depend on when the U.S. government imposes the tariffs on Chinese products, according to the Ministry of Finance.

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