It’s official: China is set to reduce the number of Hollywood films it imports in response to an escalating tariff war with the U.S. and will look to increase film imports from other countries.

The China Film Administration (Cfa), the body that handles film releases and quotas in the country, released a statement on Thursday in response to a reporter’s question about whether the Trump administration’s increasing tariffs on China would impact imports of American films. A spokesperson for the Cfa said that the U.S. government had made the wrong move to “abuse tariffs on China” and that the situation “will inevitably further reduce the domestic audience’s favorability towards American films.”

The statement added, “We will follow market rules, respect the audience’s choice, and moderately reduce the number of American films imported. China is the world’s second-largest film market. We have always adhered...