US President Joe Biden delivers remarks as part of his Investing in America agenda during a visit to Gateway Technical College in Sturtevant, Wisconsin, US, May 8, 2024.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
President of the USA Joe Biden is set to announce new tariffs in China next week, targeting strategic sectors, including a significant increase in taxes on electric vehicles (EVs), according to three people familiar with the matter.
The full announcement, expected on Tuesday, would maintain existing tariffs on many Chinese products set by former President Donald Trump, according to one of the people.
But it will also add new tariffs on semiconductors and solar equipment, according to one of the people, as well as hiking EV tariffs. Chinese-made medical supplies such as syringes and personal protective equipment also face additional tariffs, sources told Reuters.
In revising the so-called “Section 301 tariffs,” the Biden administration has zeroed in on industries it says are strategic competitive and national security sectors, one of the people said.
The long-awaited tariff update comes after several lawmakers called for massive increases in tariffs on Chinese vehicles. There are relatively few Chinese-made light vehicles being imported now.
Tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles would roughly quadruple under Biden’s new plan, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown wants the Biden administration to ban Chinese electric vehicles altogether, citing concerns that they pose risks to Americans’ privacy.
The US Trade Representative’s office made its recommendations to the White House weeks ago, but the final announcement has been delayed by internal discussions, sources said. It may come later than Tuesday, some sources said.
Biden, Democrat seeking re-election in November, he tries to contrast his approach with that of the Republican nominee Trump, who has proposed blanket tariffs that White House officials see as too blunt and prone to fuel inflation. Trump has promised 60% or higher tariffs on all Chinese goods.
The White House and the office of the US Trade Representative declined to comment.
The measures could provoke retaliation from China at a time of rising tensions between the world’s two largest economies. Trump’s broader imposition of tariffs during his 2017-2021 presidency has set off a tariff war with China.
Both 2024 contenders have moved sharply away from the free-trade consensus that once reigned in Washington, a period curtailed by China’s entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001.
In 2022, Biden launched a review of Trump-era policy under Section 301 of the US trade law. Last month, it sharply demanded higher U.S. tariffs on Chinese metal products, but the products targeted were narrow in scope, estimated at more than $1 billion in steel and aluminum products, a U.S. official said.
Biden also announced the launch of an investigation into Chinese trade practices in the shipbuilding, shipping and logistics sectors, a process that could lead to more tariffs.
The Biden administration also pressured neighboring Mexico to ban China from selling its metal products to the United States indirectly from there.
China has said the tariffs are counterproductive and hurt the US and global economy.