Concerns Surround Trump's Proposed Tariffs Against China

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On a global scale, President Trump's proposed tariffs against China is raising worries about a trade war. Closer to home, the retail industry is concerned the move will hurt both retailers and consumers.

Industry groups support holding China accountable for not following global trading rules; however, there could be unintended consequences in the form of higher prices.

According to National Retail Federation (NRF) President and CEO Matthew Shay, the tariffs proposed by the administration will punish Americans for China's violations.

"Middle and working-class Americans are just starting to see the benefits of tax reform in the form of bigger paychecks and higher wages. Engaging in a trade war will erase those gains and result in higher prices for a wide range of consumer products and basic household goods," Shay said.

"And the tariffs will create uncertainly for retailers and other businesses who are prepared to reinvest savings from the tax cut in capital investments, wage increases, workforce training and new jobs in communities across the country," he added.

Instead, NRF urged the administration to reconsider and work with the country's trading partners to enforce rules and push targeted trade remedies.

The Retail Industry Leaders Association's Hun Quach, vice president of international trade, urged the administration to re-evaluate the tariff remedies to better account for the consequences it will have for American families. 

"Retailers fully support holding our trading partners accountable when there is a proven case of intellectual property theft. But the punishment should fit the crime, and more importantly, it should punish the bad actor — China. Taxing American families with widespread tariffs on everyday consumer products clearly misses the mark," Quach said.

"There is no way to impose $50 billion in tariffs on Chinese imports without it having a negative impact on American consumers. Make no mistake, these tariffs may be aimed at China, but the bill will be charged to American consumers who will pay more at the checkout for the items they shop for every day," she added. "This trade tax has the potential to wipe out any gains the average American family received from tax reform."

In response to Trump's tariffs push, China has proposed economic moves of its own — including enforcing 15-percent duties on U.S. products, including exports of ethanol.

"We're disappointed that China is seeking additional tariffs on U.S. ethanol exports," said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. "China has and continues to be an important market for ethanol and for dried distiller's grains, and we want to remove any of these unnecessary barriers as soon as possible.  We will work closely with our government to keep this important market open to the benefit of both American agriculture and Chinese consumers.

"These actions could undercut our potential to increase exports to China following the country's stated goal to move to a 10-percent ethanol blend by 2020, and would be a major barrier to increased trade," she added.

On March 22, Trump pushed to impose tariffs on as much as $60 billion in Chinese imports, according to The Associated Press. The latest economic moves comes three weeks after the president proposed placing tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on imported aluminum. The levy would make imported steel and aluminum more expensive for American companies and individuals who use goods containing those materials, ranging from cars to air conditioners to beer cans, as CSNews Online previously reported.

However, the administration softened that proposal by giving initial exemptions to The European Union, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, South Korea, Canada and Mexico. Trump authorized those exemptions late Thursday, the AP reported.