US farmers, business groups worry about possible losses

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01:47

American farms and businesses, which are set to be affected by Washington's new round of proposed tariffs against Beijing, are taking the Trump administration to task.

"There's no end date on these things. They can end at any point. If that happens, the damage may not be so bad. But, if they go on for months and months the cost could be higher," said Dave Salmonsen of the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Farm goods, once a bright spot in the China-US trade relationship, are among the hardest hit. American pork, beef, soy and corn are just four of the products slapped with the 25 percent tax.

US Vice President Mike Pence traveled to Missouri and Iowa on Wednesday to reassure farmers.

From Brussels, Trump tweeted that "he's fighting for a level playing field for our farmers."

China's Ministry of Commerce has called the tariff threat "totally unacceptable" and vowed to retaliate.

Agriculture is not the only sector under the shadow of the escalating trade war. China could limit market access for major US companies.

That could include Apple and Intel, two of 16 US companies that made total revenue of 105.5 billion US dollars in the Chinese market last year, according to a Jefferies Financial Group analysis.

"The administration continues to impose more tariffs without a clear objective or end in sight, threatening American jobs, stifling economic investment, and increasing the prices of everyday goods," said the Information Technology Industry Council, a Silicon Valley advocacy group.