President Joe Biden announced Tuesday his administration's plan to increase tariff rates on Chinese imports totaling an estimated $18 billion.
Citing the need to protect US businesses from unfair competition, Biden's plan will raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles from 25% to 100$, increase solar cells and semiconductors from 25% to 50%, and lift tariffs on steel, aluminum and batteries from 7.5% to 25%.
Other Chinese imports also will see tariff increases, ranging from massive construction cranes to miniature medical equipment such as needles, gloves and facemasks. It's all part of an effort to help American companies remain competitive with overseas producers.
"China is producing at a rate and with a trajectory that's far in excess of any plausible estimate of global demand," a senior administration official said Monday. "That is going to flood the global market with supply that undercuts our ability to build productive capacity at home and ... leaves all of us across the world more vulnerable to economic coercion."
Biden's plan also ups the ante against political rival Donald Trump in their campaign for the 2024 presidential election. Trump, a strong critic of China during his administration, is pitching an indiscriminate 10% tariff on all Chinese imports.
