All of the statements in this article are based on reliable sources and are reproduced at the end of this article
On the eve of the U.S. presidential election, U.S. media broke the news: U.S. President Joe Biden will announce tariffs on Chinese products this week, targeting Chinese electric vehicles, medical supplies, and solar products.
Subsequently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the mainland issued a strong warning, demanding that the United States cancel tariffs on China, but in an interview a few days ago, US Treasury Secretary Yellen said that the United States hopes that China will not make a major reaction, but Yellen did not say a word about China's request to cancel tariffs.
In other words, she wants China to accept the additional tariffs imposed by the United States, so why does the United States want to increase tariffs on Chinese products?
The United States was revealed to be imposing 100% tariffs
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal on the 11th, "The U.S. government plans to increase China's electric vehicle import tariffs from 25% to 100%. ”
According to a well-known person, the US government is expected to issue an announcement on the 15th, in addition to imposing new tariffs on some key industries, the announcement will also maintain the existing tariffs on China to a large extent.
In other words, if the information is true, then the United States will increase tariffs on Chinese products in the United States, which was previously invoked by the United States in the name of "national security" in 2018 and 2019 under the name of "national security" to increase tariffs on Chinese products.
After being elected president of the United States, Biden stuck to most of the Trump-era tariffs, despite his doubts about Trapp's ability to govern.
Biden's tariffs this time are largely aimed at China's new energy vehicles.
In the first four months of this year, China's foreign trade export data was announced, and in the first four months of 2024, the mainland's total foreign trade import and export volume was 13.8 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.7%, exports increased by 4.9%, and imports increased by 6.8%, and the overall performance was good.
From January to April this year, mainland China exported 1.494 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 76.5%. New energy vehicles accounted for 42.9% of the total export value of automobiles, contributing 51.6% to the growth of automobile exports.
In the first four months, China's auto exports to 204 countries and regions around the world will sooner or later become the world's largest auto exporter.
Previously, the tariff on Chinese electric vehicles in the United States was 25%, but with Biden's increase in tariffs on Chinese new energy vehicles, this has also raised the tariff to 100%, a direct increase of more than four times.
At first, the Biden administration only targeted China's electric vehicle industry, but some U.S. PV companies were concerned about the possible impact on the PV market, so they proposed to the Biden administration to increase tariffs on China's solar industry.
Biden is doing this to limit China's economic development on the one hand, and to gain more capital support for the new presidential election.
The U.S. auto industry is also facing huge challenges, with Ford cutting orders from battery suppliers, Tesla laying off 10% of its global workforce and disbanding a Supercharger team, and General Motors has failed to meet its electrification goals for two consecutive years.
Although the U.S. auto industry is on a downward trend, they are not as unfortunate as politicians portray, with electric vehicles accounting for 5.8% of new car sales in 2022 and rising to 7.6% in 2023.
If the United States and the European Union impose tariffs on China, it will harm the interests of the whole world.
Yellen hypes "overcapacity"
In an interview with CNN after Yellen's visit to China in April, she again talked about the problem of overcapacity in China.
She herself keeps saying that she hopes to handle Sino-US trade "responsibly", but at the same time she threatens to "have a surplus of tea in China's manufacturing industry".
She claimed that the U.S. side was concerned about a possible "surge" in exports to the U.S. market in areas where China has excess capacity. In order to stop the influx of these cheap goods into the American market, they "will not give up any possible response."
The so-called response policy in Yellen's mouth is "increasing tariffs", although Yellen did not talk about the tax increase policy, but it has the meaning of raising taxes.
In May, when the U.S. media broke the news that the United States was about to raise taxes on Chinese electric vehicles this week, Yellen once again talked about the problem of "overcapacity", Yellen said:
"The U.S. will be very specific about subsidizing investments in strategic areas, but we don't want China to provide a lot of subsidies to companies with serious overcapacity, which will only squeeze our companies out of the market."
In this regard, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press conference on May 14:
"The United States exports products with a comparative advantage to the world is "free trade," and other countries export products with a comparative advantage to the world as "overcapacity." In Chinese terms, this is called "only the state officials are allowed to set fires, and the people are not allowed to light lamps", and in American terms, it means "you can't learn what I do, I say you must do it".
To put it bluntly, the United States is using the banner of "overcapacity" to suppress advanced industries from other countries, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry also refutes Yellen's statement that there is so-called overcapacity in China.
As the saying goes, "Fight with one punch to avoid a hundred punches," and we must also take corresponding countermeasures against the tariffs imposed by the United States in order to play a vigilant role.
When Trump was president, he increased tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum products, and China countered the United States in reciprocity, and China subsequently raised tariffs on 128 U.S. imports.
This time, President Biden's tax hike on China's new energy industry will inevitably usher in China's countermeasures, China's own economic development is strong, it has a strong ability to resist external shocks, and there is plenty of room for policy adjustment.
The manufacturing industry in the United States itself is not strong, there is a shortage of human resources in the manufacturing industry, most young people like the business administration, law, and financial industries with higher salaries, and the traditional manufacturing industry in the United States has declined, and the burden on the American people has further increased since the tariffs on Chinese imports.
summary
The United States as a big country, its every move will have a great impact, if other countries see the United States increase so many tariffs at once, then other countries will inevitably be red-eyed, not right will also increase tariffs, then China's electric vehicle industry will not want to export well, in the long run will inevitably have an impact on the economy.
In the competition in the field of electric vehicles, China must examine the current situation from a strategic height, not only unswervingly follow its own development path, but also fiercely counter in key links, only in this way can it win the initiative in future development.
References
Observer.com2024-05-13 "Compromise with U.S. Companies? The Biden administration's tariffs on China may exempt photovoltaic equipment》
Huanqiu.com2024-04-23What measures will China take to counter the US Section 301 investigation? Response of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs》
Global Times2024-05-14 "Yellen once again talked about China's so-called "overcapacity" in the field of new energy such as electric vehicles, and China refutes it! 》
Observer2024-04-15"Hyping China's so-called "overcapacity", Yellen clamored after her visit to China: all response options are considered"
Zhejiang Provincial Committee of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade2024-5-14"Just tomorrow?! The United States was revealed to be imposing 100% tariffs, and China responded》