U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai defended recent tariff increases on countries like China, stating that, when combined with strategic investments, they serve as a “legitimate and constructive” tool to revive domestic industries.
Her remarks, made in an interview with AFP, come just after steep tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, EV batteries, and solar cells took effect. Additional levies on other products are also set to follow. These tariffs, targeting $18 billion in Chinese goods, were implemented as the U.S. gears up for a presidential election, with both major political parties taking a tough stance on China amid rising competition between Washington and Beijing.
Reflecting on her term, Tai emphasized that tariffs are intended to counteract “unfair trade” practices by China, noting that the latest hikes are designed to support the growth of U.S. clean energy investments, particularly in sectors like EVs, batteries, and semiconductors.
“We wanted to ensure that these increased tariffs are paired with the investments we’re making,” Tai said, adding that it’s much harder to revive an industry once it has been lost.
The U.S. manufacturing sector has faced significant declines in recent decades, as production shifted overseas, particularly to China, whose share of global manufacturing now stands at around 30%, far outpacing the U.S. Tai acknowledged that while the U.S. has seen new investments in manufacturing, a full recovery will take time.
She clarified that the goal is not to bring all production back to U.S. shores but to reverse the previous “erosion” in key industries.
President Joe Biden has largely upheld the tariffs imposed by his predecessor, Donald Trump, which affected about $300 billion worth of Chinese goods. This year’s tariff hikes expand on those earlier measures.
A June report from the Tax Foundation projected that the cumulative impact of tariffs could reduce U.S. GDP by 0.2% over the long term. The foundation further noted that additional tariff increases, like those proposed by Trump in his bid for re-election, could shrink GDP by as much as 0.8%.