Last-minute phone calls pull the North American neighbours back from the brink of a trade war, but the US is still targeting Chinese imports.

As U.S. President Donald Trump's 10% tariffs on Chinese imports went into effect early Tuesday, Beijing responded with a swaft of retaliatory economic measures targeting American companies.

After a 10 percent tariff on Chinese products took effect on Tuesday, China announced retaliatory measures, including tariffs and an investigation of Google.