UPDATE 1-China imposes new tariffs on some U.S. chicken products

BEIJING, April 28 (Reuters) - China will levy anti-subsidy duties of up to 31.4 percent on some chicken products from the United States, a move that could further strain ties between the two major economies.

The Commerce Ministry ruled on Wednesday that U.S. chicken producers have been receiving unfair subsidies and that these had hurt Chinese companies. It did not explain how the U.S. firms were subsidised.

U.S. companies exporting white-feather chicken products that had submitted information to a Chinese investigation would face duties of 3.8 to 11.2 percent, while those that had not complied with Beijing's requests would face the higher rate, the ministry said in a statement on its website (www.mofcom.gov.cn).

Chinese firms buying white-feather chicken products from the United States will need to pay a deposit to the customs authority in line with the duty starting from Friday, it added.

The preliminary ruling on countervailing duties comes on top of anti-dumping duties of up to 105.4 percent that China imposed on the U.S. chicken products in February.

China began its investigation of U.S. chicken imports after the United States imposed safeguard duties on Chinese-made tires, which China has challenged at the World Trade Organisation.

Chicken feet and wing tips, virtually worthless in the U.S. market, are a delicacy in southern China. Many U.S. poultry producers count on the Chinese market to round out their profits.

Trade frictions add to a range of bilateral disputes from military to environmental issues, with U.S. calls that China let its currency rise being the most serious source of contention at present. Leaders of the two countries will meet in Beijing in late May for their annual Strategic and Economic Dialogue, in an attempt to address some of the concerns.

(Reporting by Langi Chiang and Simon Rabinovitch; Editing by Ken Wills)

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