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WASHINGTON – The Trump administration broadens the battlefield in its commercial struggle with China, going beyond industrial products to threaten for the first time tariffs on a range of consumer products illustrating the dependence of the great American economy on imports. 19659003] The list includes retail items such as bicycles, sound systems, dog food and leashes, wallets, hammers and other tools. "They hit not only the wallets of consumers, but they literally hit portfolios"
John Gold,
Vice President of the National Retail Federation, whose members rely heavily on Chinese products at low prices.
Gold was referring to the inclusion on the new list of $ 200 billion of products under examination for new taxes on the import of 10% of "products "Travel", a broad category that includes wallets and luggage. The American Apparel & Footwear Association estimates that over 80% of this $ 31 billion sector is imported from China
The Product Line Under Study for New Rates – A 195-page List starting with "And roll" ice hockey gloves "," carpets and other textile floor coverings "and" sewing machines "- shows how much the US is turning to China for consumer goods, while the # 39, the most populous economy in the world
The potential pain of disrupting this relationship has prompted a growing reaction within the president
Donald Trump
Republican Party on its trade policy, with the Senate vote Wednesday to try to restrict its broad powers to block imports.
Many lawmakers are becoming increasingly nervous as Mr. Trump is pressuring Beijing and its allies in Europe. At a NATO summit in Brussels on Wednesday, the President demanded that Germany and others pay more for their defense in order to ease the financial burden of the United States. United. He hinted that the United States could break its alliance after 70 years. 19659003] In its growing trade dispute with Beijing, the Trump administration has so far tried to move away from actions that would cause an obvious shock on store shelves, focusing primarily on industrial components that would take months, if ever, before affecting the final price This strategy, however, turns out to be increasingly difficult to maintain, while Mr Trump redoubles efforts to put pressure on the China so that it changes its policies and business practices, promising to counter all Chinese retaliation with even greater retaliation from it.
"The first set of tariffs has been civilized in terms of our industry," said
Rick Helfenbein,
head of the clothing trade group. "This one is a bypbad – we were hit directly to the head."
A senior government official said by unveiling the Tuesday night list that "we have actually tried to take into account the potential impact on consumers". next phase of their pricing strategy. He added that the goal was not to increase the price of imports but "to encourage China to change its behavior".
million. Trump is subjecting a growing share of the US economy to import restrictions – and the threat of countermeasures trading partners against US exports – the Senate voted Wednesday 88 to 11 on a motion to restrict the broad powers of the president to impose tariffs.
The vote was mainly symbolic, since the measure was not binding and offered a vague plan requiring "a role for the Congress" in certain tariff decisions. Yet, that Senate leaders allowed a rare vote on a measure attacking an administration action, the first on trade, was "a clear reprimand of that administration's trade policy," said the government. ;Arizona
GOP Sen. Jeff Flake,
The new $ 200 billion import list is the latest step in Trump 's commercial battle with China, launched earlier this year after a one – month investigation concluded that the Chinese government and Chinese companies had As a punishment for such practices, Mr Trump imposed tariffs of 25% on $ 34 billion of Chinese imports on July 6 and planned to hit $ 16 billion dollars later.
China has responded quickly by imposing its own duties on US imports, and the new $ 200 billion list of the administration is supposed to serve as a counter-retaliation. These rates would only be imposed after the public hearings scheduled for the end of August.
Trump said he was ready to impose additional tariffs on $ 200 billion of Chinese imports if Beijing retaliated again – which would mean that the vast majority of what the US United buy to China would be taxed. China sent $ 523.7 billion worth of products to the United States last year.
Write to Jacob M. Schlesinger at [email protected]
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