What Does the US-China Trade War Mean For You?

With the trade war escalating daily, we have many members of the Transatlantic family worried about what lies ahead. No one wins in a trade war, but as consumers, we should not turn a blind eye while these leaders gamble our fate.

Here’s a timeline of the US-China trade war so far:

  • March 1: Trump announces tariffs on all imports of steel and aluminum, including metals from China.
  • March 22: Trump announces the US will soon slap $50 billion worth of Chinese goods with a 25% tariff. China announces tariffs in retaliation for the steel and aluminum tariffs and promises a response to new announcement.
  • April 3: The US Trade Representative announces the full list of Chinese goods that could be subject to the tariff. There is a mandatory 60-day comment period for industries to ask for exemptions from the tariffs.
  • April 4: China rolls out a list of more than 100 US goods with roughly $50 billion that will be subject to retaliatory tariffs.
  • May 19: After a visit from Chinese officials, the two countries announce the outline of a deal to avoid the tariffs.
  • May 29: The White House announces that the tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese goods will move forward , with the final list of goods released June 15. The move appears to wreck the nascent trade deal.
  • June 15: Trump rolls out the final list of goods subject to new tariffs. Chinese imports worth $34 billion will be subject to the new 25% tariff as of July 6, with another $16 billion worth of imports subject to the tariff at a later date. China retaliates with an equivalent set of tariffs.
  • June 18: Trump threatens a 10% tariff on another $200 billion worth of Chinese goods.
  • July 6 : The first tranche of tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese goods goes into effect, China responds.
  • July 10: The US releases the initial list of $200 billion worth of Chinese goods that could be subject to a 10% tariff.
  • August 1: The US confirms the list of $200 billion worth of Chinese goods that could be subject to a 10% tariff, will be raised to a whopping 25%.

So What’s the Motive?

Trump is trying to use duties and taxes to push China to apparently change their unfair trade practices. His plan is to force Beijing into negotiations with promises to stop the escalation of the devastating war, but why on the tax payers dime? We’ll have to stay tuned to see what turn awaits us. So far, the current tariffs have not hit our other major trade partners, but that could change in a hurry if he’s not careful:

So far, the enacted tariffs haven't hit a large percentage of goods with major trading partners, but that could change in a hurry.

Click here to access the first list of tariffs effected by the Trade War

Click here to access the second list of tariffs effected by the Trade War

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