TThe Biden administration announced new tariffs on Tuesday on Chinese-made electric vehicles, quadrupling the current tariff from 27.5% to 102.5%as well as new tariffs on solar cells, steel and aluminum.
These tariffs are expected to increase $18 billion in imports from China.
China currently exports very few electric vehicles to the US, so tariffs are unlikely to have much of an impact in the short term. In the first quarter of 2024, only one Chinese car manufacturer, Geely, exported EVs to the US and accounted for less than 1% of the market share.
However, the Biden administration says it fears that in the long term, China’s subsidies to its electric vehicle industry could lead it to claim a larger proportion of market share. “When the global market is flooded with artificially cheap Chinese goods, the viability of American and other foreign companies is called into question,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during a speech she gave while visiting Beijing in April.
Since taking office, President Joe Biden has left intact the tariffs Trump imposed on China as part of an attempt to encourage more American made. In a conference call with reporters on Monday, Lael Brainard, director of the White House National Economic Council, said the tariffs would help manufacturing workers in Pennsylvania and Michigan, ensuring that “historic investments in jobs spurred by President Biden’s actions are not harmed by a flood.” of unfairly underpriced exports from China.”
Some observers have suggested that the tariffs are an attempt to outdo Donald Trump, who express support for a general tax of 60% or more on all Chinese products.
The announcement also comes during an election year in which tensions between the US and China are very high. More than 83% of Americans have an unfavorable view of Chinaaccording to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2023.
Beijing responded by saying the new tariffs violate World Trade Organization rules. “Section 301 tariffs imposed by the former US administration on China seriously disrupted normal trade and economic exchanges between China and the US. The WTO has already ruled that these tariffs go against WTO rules,” said Lin Jian, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a conversation with reporters on Friday.
Before the announcement, senior US officials denied that the tariffs were related to the presidential election, the Financial Times reported. “This has nothing to do with politics,” said one official.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
