Tariff-Hike Delay Has Tech Happy but Clamoring for Duties to End for Good

“Productive” U.S.-China trade talks convinced Trump to delay the increase, and a summit will be planned with Chinese President Xi Jinping to “conclude” a trade agreement, tweeted Trump Sunday. In another tweet, he hailed the “substantial progress in our trade talks with China on important structural issues including intellectual property protection, technology transfer, agriculture, services, currency, and many other issues."

Trump didn’t say how long the latest postponement will last, nor did he mention the future fate of tariffs imposed since July on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods. That prompted tech groups to praise the postponement, while renewing their clamor for a steadfast trade solution that will remove all the duties for good. With the increase to 25 percent scheduled to take effect automatically in the wee hours of Saturday morning, delaying the hike will require the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to publish a new Federal Register notice this week tabling the hike indefinitely or setting a new deadline (see 1812170028).

“We welcome the Trump administration not raising tariffs to 25 percent,” said CTA President Gary Shapiro. Tariffs “are costing the tech industry an additional $1 billion per month, and the cost of 5G products and parts from China have skyrocketed,” he said. “We urge both sides to move forward to a permanent resolution that will address trade issues with China, while also protecting American leadership in innovation.”

The National Retail Federation praised the delay as a “positive development, and we encourage the administration to build on this momentum and reach a resolution that will eliminate uncertainty,” said CEO Matthew Shay. “We look forward to continued progress and an agreement that will end tariffs and achieve a more fair and balanced trading relationship” between the U.S. and China.

The Retail Industry Leaders Association, which represents Best Buy, Target and other big-box retailers, commends Trump’s decision to delay the tariff increases “on thousands of everyday products that millions of American families want and need,” said Hun Quach, vice president-international trade. The “ongoing” trade talks “have been hanging over America's retailers causing uncertainty throughout our supply chain,” she said. RILA urges the administration to “quickly find a path forward that removes all tariffs on everyday consumer products," she said.

“We are encouraged by this latest sign of progress and that the administration seems to have heard the concerns of U.S. businesses and farmers who simply cannot afford more tariffs,” said Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, the free-trade campaign that dozens of trade associations from various industries, including CTA and NRF, formed in September (see 1809120026). “Existing tariffs and shifting deadlines" remain negatives, it said. Though the campaign agrees with “the need to address China’s unfair trading practices,” using tariffs “as leverage will always be a losing proposition,” it said. “We need a solution as soon as possible that ends the tariff uncertainty once and for all and improves the U.S.-China trading relationship.”

The Coalition for a Prosperous America thinks the tariffs are working “to rebuild the US economy, achieve leverage, and dampen China’s ability to erode America’s economic, military, and geopolitical strength,” said the group Monday. Knowing from “the mistakes of past presidents that previous promises by Beijing were not kept,” the “enforcement mechanisms” in a trade agreement “must be clear, strong, and quick,” it said. “China must agree not to retaliate if enforcement of any agreement occurs.”