U.S. raises tariffs significantly on EVs, other goods from China

Administration officials said they think the tariffs won't escalate tensions with China, yet they expect that China will explore ways to respond to the new taxes on their products. For it's part, China maintains that the tariffs are in violation of the global trade rules that the United States originally helped establish through the World Trade Organization. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Friday that the planned new tariffs compounded the problems caused by tariffs that the Donald Trump administration had previously put on Chinese goods. The tariffs come in the middle of a heated campaign between President Joe Biden and his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, in which both candidates are vying to show who's tougher on China. Biden sees targeted tariffs as needed to defend key industries and workers, while Trump has threatened broad 10 per cent tariffs against all imports from rivals and allies alike. The tariffs on ship-to-shore cranes will rise to 25 per cent from zero, those on syringes and needles will rise to 50 per cent from nothing now and some personal protective equipment used in medical facilities will rise to 25 per cent from as little as zero per cent now. More tariffs will follow in 2025 and 2026 on semiconductors, whose tariff rate will double to 50 per cent, as well as lithium-ion batteries that are not used in elective vehicles, graphite and permanent magnets as well as rubber medical and surgical gloves.