Trade war: US looking at lifting tariffs on Chinese goods, American officials say
- Office of US Trade Representative announces a required procedure, four years after the first tariffs were imposed by then-president Donald Trump
- Businesses that want the tariffs to continue are told to notify the office
Washington’s trade office told US businesses on Tuesday that it had begun a statutory process that could ultimately end up removing tariffs on Chinese goods.
The notification, part of a legal requirement to review the tariffs four years after they were first put into place, puts the burden on US businesses benefiting from those tariffs to speak out and say that they want the policy to continue, the office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) said.
“The office of the US Trade Representative is today commencing the statutory process required leading up to the four-year anniversaries of the tariff actions,” the announcement said.
“If a request for continuation is received, USTR will conduct a review of the tariff actions,” it said.
The procedural step comes amid an intense debate in Washington over the tariffs, first imposed by then-president Donald Trump in 2018 and maintained so far by Joe Biden 16 months into his presidency.