US Firm Illumina Faces Setback as China Blocks Imports Amid Escalating Trade War

China has banned imports of genetic sequencers from Illumina Inc. ILMN, just minutes after U.S. President Donald Trump’s additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods took effect.

China hit back at Trump's recent tariff hikes by placing its own tariffs on certain U.S. goods, sanctioning American companies, and planning to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization.

Beijing has imposed a 15% tax on American poultry, wheat, corn, and cotton in response to the U.S. doubling tariffs on Chinese products. A 10% tariff will also apply to soybeans, pork, beef, and other food items.

Also Read: China Strikes Retaliatory Measures Against US Following Trump’s 10% Tariffs: It’s ‘Much-Less Than Proportional,’ Analyst Says

China accounted for about 7% of Illumina's sales of $4.3 billion in 2024. The ban takes effect immediately.

Benzinga emailed Illumina to provide a statement/comment on the move.

Sequencing is used in molecular biology to study genomes and the proteins they encode to identify associations with diseases, phenotypes, and potential drug targets.

Sales from China fell 20% year over year to $308 million in 2024.

In February, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce added Illumina and Calvin Klein owner PVH Corp. PVH to its list of unreliable entities amid the ongoing trade war with the U.S.

China claimed the two companies had disrupted normal market transactions and tried to harm the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

According to the Ministry’s statement, the measure was introduced to safeguard national sovereignty, security, and development interests and is in accordance with relevant laws and regulations.

Bloomberg noted that with China banning new Illumina machines, the company is expected to lose more market share. Its addition to Beijing's blacklist has already sparked competition, with Chinese rivals pushing customers to switch to their products.

Following the ban, shares of Chinese gene-sequencing firms surged on Tuesday. MGI Tech Co. led the rally, rising 20% to its highest level since December 2023.

Price Action: ILMN stock is down 2.14% at $82.39 in early trading at the last check on Tuesday.

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