White House Action on Trade with China Includes Tariff Rate Changes
May 15, 2024 – The Biden Administration announced this week that President Biden will raise tariffs on certain imports from China.
The tariff rate increases will affect imports from China on steel and aluminum, semiconductors, electric vehicles, batteries, critical minerals, solar cells, ship-to-shore cranes, and medical products.
Tariff rates increases are sharp:
- For electric vehicles under Section 301, from 25% to 100%
- For semiconductors from 25% to 50%
- For solar cells (whether or not assembled into modules) from 25% to 50%
- For syringes and needles from 0% to 50%.
- For certain personal protective equipment (PPE), from 0–7.5% to 25%
- For rubber medical and surgical gloves from 7.5% to 25%
- For lithium-ion EV batteries from 7.5% to 25%
- For lithium-ion non-EV batteries from 7.5% to 25%
- For battery parts from 7.5% to 25%
- For steel and aluminum products under Section 301 from 0–7.5% to 25%
- For natural graphite and permanent magnets from zero to 25%
- For certain other critical minerals from zero to 25%
See further details in the White House fact sheet.
AAEI Members can reach out to Eugene Laney with questions or concerns on the increase of tariff rates.
USTR Completes Long-Awaited Section 301 Review
May 15, 2024 – The Biden Administration announced yesterday the completion of its statutory review of the tariff actions in the Section 301 investigation of China’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said that “while the tariffs have been effective in encouraging [China] to take some steps to address the issues identified in the Section 301 investigation, further action is required.” Tariff rate increases “serve [USTR’s] statutory goal to stop [China’s] harmful technology transfer-related acts, policies, and practices,” she added. For more information, read the report.
U.S. Bracing for China's Possible Retaliation on Tariff Action
May 15, 2024 – Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said this week that she believes China will possibly retaliate against the U.S. for the Biden Administration’s tariff action that targets certain manufacturing sectors.
Sec. Yellen told reporters that the U.S. notified China that Trump-era tariffs may be reconfigured to be narrowly and strategically targeted. She added that she was hopeful that China would recognize that U.S. actions were targeted, and declined to speculate on any possible retaliatory measures by Beijing. Read the story from Reuters.
Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Renew MTB
May 15, 2024 – Members of the House Ways and Means Committee introduced legislation this week that would renew the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB), a trade preference program that expired more than 3 years ago.
AAEI has long-supported MTB renewal and continues to urge Congressional support for its renewal. The MTB suspends duties on certain imported products that are deemed non-controversial, revenue-neutral, and administrable by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Read the statement by Ways and Means Committee Trade Subcommittee Chair Adrian Smith (R-NE).
New Bill Could Expand Sanctions on Xinjiang Forced Labor
May 15, 2024 – New legislation was introduced last month to expand sanctions and other measures against forced labor violations involving Uyghurs and other minorities in the Xinjiang region of China. Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY), co-chairs of the Congressional Uyghur Caucus, introduced the Uyghur Genocide Accountability and Sanctions Act, which expands the sanctions imposed under the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act (UHRPA) of 2020. In addition to addressing forced labor abuses, the legislation would prohibit U.S. government agencies from contracting with any business implicated in forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
For more details, read the news release here and the bill text here.
CBP Extends ACE Export Manifest for Rail Cargo Test
May 15, 2024 – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced this week the renewal of the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Export Manifest for Rail Cargo Test, part of the National Customs Automation Program (NCAP). The renewed test will run for two more years, starting from May 13, 2024, the date of the announcement.
For more information and details on participation or comment submission, read the notice here.
