BEIJING, May 14 (Reuters) - China strongly opposed the

United States' tariff hikes, its commerce ministry said on

Tuesday, vowing it will take resolute measures to defend its

rights and interests.

"U.S. raising Section 301 tariffs violates President Biden's

commitment to 'not seek to suppress and contain China's

development' and 'not to seek to decouple and break links with

China'," said a statement by the ministry, adding the move will

"seriously affect the atmosphere of bilateral cooperation."

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled a bundle of

steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports.

The new measures affect $18 billion in Chinese imported

goods including steel and aluminum, semiconductors, batteries,

critical minerals, solar cells and cranes, while retaining

Trump-era tariffs on over $300 billion in goods.

The announcement confirmed earlier Reuters reporting.

"The U.S. should immediately correct its wrongdoing and

remove the additional tariffs imposed on China," the Chinese

commerce ministry urged in the statement.

The Biden administration officials said their measures are

"carefully targeted" and unlikely to worsen a bout of inflation

that has already angered U.S. voters and imperiled Biden's

re-election bid.

Some analysts said the impact from the new tariff hikes on

China may be limited in the short run.

Nomura analysts said in a note on Monday that U.S.-bound

exports of Chinese EVs, medical supplies and semiconductor

products only account for 5.9% of China's overall exports to the

United States and less than 1% of China's total exports.

Still, the rising geopolitical concerns over the

relationship between the world's two biggest economies may dent

market confidence, and China's economy also faces challenges of

a protracted property weakness and tepid demand.

(Reporting by Ellen Zhang and Ryan Woo; Editing by Ros Russell)