ZCZC
BCN-10
US-COMPANIES-CHINA-TRADE-TARIFF
Over 600 U.S. companies, associations warn White House against tariff
hikes on China
WASHINGTON, June 14, 2019 (BSS/Xinhua) – A total of 661 U.S. companies and
associations have signed a letter to President Donald Trump, urging his
administration to abandon tariff hikes and reach a deal with China, a U.S.
nationwide anti-tariff campaign said Thursday.
According to a press release issued by Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, a
bipartisan campaign against levies, 520 companies and 141 associations said
in the letter that they “remain concerned about the escalation of tit-for-tat
tariffs” between the United States and China.
“We know firsthand that the additional tariffs will have a significant,
negative and long-term impact on American businesses, farmers, families and
the U.S. economy,” read the letter. “Tariffs are taxes paid directly by U.S.
companies.”
The letter came as the U.S. Trade Representative Office plans to begin a
public hearing on June 17 to solicit public comments on and responses to
proposed tariff measures.
The Trump administration increased additional tariffs on 200 billion U.S.
dollars worth of Chinese imports from 10 percent to 25 percent in May, and
has threatened to impose tariffs of 25 percent on essentially all remaining
Chinese goods sold to the United States — valued at roughly 300 billion
dollars — which are not yet subject to extra duties.
In response, China raised additional tariffs on a range of U.S. imports on
June 1.
Tariffs Hurt the Heartland said combined with the impact of previously
implemented tariffs and retaliation, the new tariffs on another 300 billion
dollars worth of Chinese imports, if imposed, would result in the loss of
more than 2 million U.S. jobs, add more than 2,000 dollars in costs for an
average American family of four, and reduce the value of U.S. gross domestic
product by 1 percent.
“We urge your administration to get back to the negotiating table,”
signatories of the letter told Trump. “An escalated trade war is not in the
country’s best interest, and both sides will lose.”
BSS/XINHUA/HR/1205