The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a coalition of the United Steelworkers Union (USW) and U.S.-based manufacturers, released a report appealing to the U.S. to rebuild trade barriers against Chinese imports and reinstate the import-increasing protections that were put in place after China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001.
The provision, known as Chapter 421, allows the U.S. to impose provisional tariffs to alleviate market disruptions wrought by surging imports from China and to give U.S. domestic industries breathing room. The provision had been invoked only once before, when Barack Obama, as President of the U.S. in 2009, temporarily raised the tariff rate on tires imported from China from the WTO requirement of 4% to 35% at the request of the USW, a measure that ended in 2013.
According to the AAM, new imports, including electric vehicles, solar panels and semiconductors, threaten new industries, while older industries such as steel, glass and tires continue to withstand surging imports of Chinese goods. AAM, thus, called for a reauthorization and update of the provision. The AAM also called for the same measures to be applied to Chinese goods imported in third countries to avoid permanent damage to U.S. production.
