President Joe Biden said his administration is still discussing possible action on US tariffs on Chinese imports, after Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said she expects a decision “shortly.”
“No, we are having further discussions on that,” Biden told reporters in Delaware on Sunday when asked if there was a decision.
Biden’s administration has been considering easing some Trump-era tariffs on consumer goods from China for some time amid divisions among his team. Senior US and Chinese officials discussed US economic sanctions and tariffs last week.
Raimondo said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” earlier Sunday that “we were briefing him and I expect he’ll make a decision shortly.”
Labor unions and some top officials, including Trade Representative Katherine Tai, support keeping the tariffs, which they believe give the US leverage in negotiations with China. Others, such as US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, have argued for reducing tariffs on Chinese goods to help curb the fastest pace of inflation in 40 years and reduce consumer prices on everyday items.
“We should be clear about what lifting tariffs would and wouldn’t do, right?” Raimondo told NBC. “Like, lifting tariffs isn’t going to bring down top-line inflation in a very significant way.”
“What it will do potentially is help consumers on certain household goods, ” she said. Most important to Biden is that any action is done “is without hurting American workers.”
Former President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on a range of Chinese goods starting in July 2018 after an investigation concluded China stole intellectual property from American companies and forced them to transfer technology. The Biden administration said in May it would review the tariffs, a process required to keep them from starting to expire in July.
Raimondo said last month that the US has decided to keep tariffs on steel and aluminum but may drop them on other goods.
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
