The office of the U.S. Trade Representative said on Wednesday that some of the significant hikes in U.S. tariffs on various Chinese imports, such as computer chips, medical supplies, electric cars and their batteries, and computer software, will go into effect on August 1.
While intensifying other tariffs, such as tripling import levies on Chinese electric vehicles to more than 100% and doubling semiconductor duties to 50%, President Joe Biden will maintain those imposed by his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump.
A 30-day window for public comments will end on June 28th, according to a federal notification published by USTR on a new tab. The trade agency is looking for input on whether the proposed 25% charge on medical masks, gloves, and a planned 50% tariff on syringes should be raised, as well as the implications of the proposed tariff increases on the American economy, particularly consumers.
The new regulations will impact the United States’ import of gloves, masks, and syringes worth over $640 million from China in 2023.
Together with revised duty rates and implementation dates, the notification also includes particular tariff codes for the 387 product categories that are impacted. According to USTR, tariffs intended to take effect in 2025 and 2026 will do so on January 1 of the year.
“Products targeted by China for dominance, or are products in sectors where the United States has recently made significant investments,” are among the items covered by the planned tariff increases from China.
Washington has stated that China’s state-driven surplus production capacity in these areas threatens the profitability of American enterprises, and it is spending hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy tax subsidies to grow the U.S. EV, solar, and other emerging industries. The goal of the tariffs is to shield American employment against an anticipated influx of low-cost Chinese goods.
According to the White House, the additional restrictions will impact $18 billion worth of existing Chinese imports, which include solar cells, semiconductors, electric cars, vital minerals, steel and aluminum, and cranes. Due to previous auto tariffs, the United States imports very few Chinese EVs, thus the EV statistic may have more political than practical implications.
