The government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said on Tuesday that it was set to lodge a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) over a United States-imposed tariff hike, claiming that the addition of an extra 10 percent duty is “grossly inconsistent” with the multilateral trading system and “harms the interests of both parties”.

Expressing disapproval of US' imposition of an additional duty on products from Hong Kong, a spokesman for the HKSAR government said in a statement that the move constitutes a violation of WTO rules.

The additional 10 percent duty on products from Hong Kong raises the duty level to a cumulative 20 percent on goods from the SAR.

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The HKSAR government has urged the US government to reconsider its action and withdraw the unilateral tariff measures.

The spokesman said the HKSAR government will file a complaint with the WTO to defend the city’s legitimate rights.

China’s ambassador to the US, Xie Feng, who is in Beijing for the annual two sessions as a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, said that history has shown that waging a tariff war or a trade war with the intention of harming other economies always ends up undermining the countries that initiate such moves.

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Xie said that the severe challenges facing Sino-US relations must be acknowledged, but that the people can have confidence in China's development and in the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

He added that it is important for China to remain steadfast in defending national sovereignty, security, and development interests.