US Unlikely to Remove Trump-Era China Tariffs Anytime Soon, Expert Says
The current administration and subsequent ones are unlikely to remove Trump-era tariffs on China “because of the pressure of the labor vote, which is really the swing vote in this country right now,” said Anna Ashton, director of China corporate affairs with the Eurasia Group, speaking during an April 21 event hosted by the Miller Center at the University of Virginia. She said she doesn't see either political party moving to repeal the measures.
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“I don't think it's going to happen in the U.S. under the Biden administration, and maybe not under a subsequent administration, Republican or Democrat,” said Ashton, who previously oversaw the US-China Business Council’s government affairs work. “But I do think it is the thing that would be easiest for the U.S. to do and most impactful in terms of a symbol of goodwill.”
Sebastian Mallaby, senior fellow for international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations, also said the U.S. should eliminate the tariffs. “The Trump tariffs have zero to do with national security,” he said during the event. “They're just dumb.”
Mallaby said removing the tariffs would also “signal” that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was “serious” during an April 20 speech in which she said the U.S. isn’t seeking to suppress China’s economy or decouple (see 2304200018). Eliminating tariffs “would signal that you're willing to trade with China” outside of items that have sensitive military applications, he said.