Olena Buturlym18:24, 05/14/24

Washington sharply raised tariffs on Chinese goods.

On Tuesday, May 14, US President Joe Biden, who wants to limit China’s access to AI, unveiled a package of sharp tariff increases on a range of Chinese imports, including batteries for electric cars, computer chips and medical drugs, risking a confrontation with Beijing ahead of elections, writes Reuters .

It is noted that China immediately promised retaliation. Its commerce ministry said Beijing opposes the US tariff hike and will take measures to protect its interests, calling on the United States to reverse the measures.

At the same time, the USA increased tariffs fourfold (up to 100%) on electric cars and twice (up to 50%) on semiconductors. In a White House statement, there are “unacceptable risks” to the economic security of the United States caused by the unfair actions of China, which is flooding world markets with cheap goods.

The new measures will affect $18 billion worth of imported Chinese goods, including steel and aluminum, semiconductors, electric vehicles, essential minerals, solar panels and faucets, the White House said.

According to the US Census Bureau, in 2023 the United States imported $427 billion worth of goods from China and exported $148 billion worth of goods to China. This trade gap has persisted for decades and is becoming an increasingly sensitive issue in Washington, the agency writes.

U.S. Trade Representative Catherine Tay said the revised tariffs were justified because China was stealing U.S. intellectual property.

The influence of elections

Biden is trying to convince voters of the effectiveness of his economic policies, despite low unemployment and above-trend economic growth. Analysts warn that the trade tariffs could raise the cost of electric cars in general, undermining the US president’s climate goals and his drive to create manufacturing jobs.

Biden has said he wants to win this era of competition with China, but not start a trade war. In recent months, he has worked to ease tensions in talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Increase in US tariffs

Earlier, UNIAN wrote that US President Joe Biden intends to announce new tariffs on China on Tuesday, May 14. The “tariffs” target industries such as electric vehicles, medical supplies and “solar” equipment.

(C)UNIAN 2024