The US Postal Service has suspended accepting parcels from mainland China and Hong Kong until further notice, escalating further tension between the world's two most powerful economies.

In a statement, the postal service said: "The Postal Service will temporarily suspend only international package acceptance of inbound parcels from China and Hong Kong Posts until further notice."

"Note the flow of letters and flats from China and Hong Kong will not be impacted," the statement said.

The announcement was made just days after  US President Donald Trump signed an executive order that terminated the “de minimis” exemption.

The rule allowed anyone, including exporters, to ship packages with less than USD 800 to the USA without duties or even undergoing inspection.

The measure was announced amid the introduction of 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports to the US.

US-China tariff imposition

China has hit back at US President Donald Trump's 10 percent tariff on goods from Beijing with a counter tax and a probe into tech giant Google, media reports said.

China has announced a 15 percent tariff on coal and liquified natural gas and another 10 percent on oil and agricultural equipment imported from the US.

"The US's unilateral imposition of tariffs seriously violates the rules of the World Trade Organization," China's finance ministry said in a statement as quoted by CNBC TV 18.

"It is not only unhelpful in solving its own problems, but also undermines the normal economic and trade cooperation between China and the US."

In a deescalation of the trade wars against its neighbours, Trump paused tariffs on Mexico and Canada after the two countries struck a deal with the US.

The US President on Saturday ordered 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports and 10 percent on goods from China, citing a "major threat" by "illegal aliens".

The move had triggered strong retaliation from Ottawa and Mexico City.

Google's search and internet services have remained unavailable in China since 2020 though the tech giant operates in Beijing for advertising business.