A coalition of more than 100 US trade associations has written to President-elect Joe Biden urging the incoming administration to reconsider the current tariffs regime.
The coalition, called Americans for Free Trade, said in its letter on Dec 7 that the current tariffs, which include Section 232 on steel and aluminum and the Section 301 China tariffs have increased the production costs for US manufacturers who “rely on imported components for production at home.”
Moreover, these tariffs have had a more significant effect this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has “adversely affected” the US economy in more ways than one, the coalition wrote.
The coalition, which consists of auto and machine equipment manufacturing associations and import/export organizations, called for an end to the trade wars with China and other trading partners of the US, which have cost the nation’s businesses at least $68bn in additional taxes, making them less competitive compared with the global counterparts.
The letter added that the tariffs continued to “hamper pandemic response and recovery efforts,” while limiting US companies’ ability to make further investments.