tariffs is a four-fold jump from the existing 25% and comes after senior officials from US the administration expressed frustration over China’s manufacturing “overcapacity" of electric vehicles, which poses a threat to US jobs and national security. Previously, US President Joe Biden and his Republican challenger, Donald Trump, have spoken about going tough on China. This move can provide a strong footing for the Democrats to flaunt their anti-China credentials ahead of the US presidential elections in November of this year.
The domestic political opinion in the US seems to be against Chinese imports, with Ohio Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown even calling for a ban on Chinese EV imports. “Tariffs are not enough. We need to ban Chinese EVs from the US Period," the Senator said, as per the Associated Press.
The Alliance for American Manufacturing, a business group in the US, released a report in February warning that the introduction of cheap Chinese autos to the American market “could end up being an extinction-level event for the US auto sector." The report revealed some glaring details that alerted the officials in the US administration, as the auto industry accounts for 3% of America’s GDP. The fears came after the car model was launched by Chinese automaker BYD at a price of just $12,000 for people in China. The quality of craftsmanship in this car competes with that of American-made electric vehicles (EVs) priced three to four times higher, sparking concerns within the US automotive industry.
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