Updated at 3:18 p.m. ET China is cutting tariffs on vehicles from the U. S., but the biggest benefits could go to German…
Updated at 3:18 p.m. ET
China is cutting tariffs on vehicles from the U. S., but the biggest benefits could go to German automakers — and Tesla, the American electric-car maker.
Chinese President Xi Jinping signaled in a speech last month that the tariff cut would be coming. The foreign ministry confirmed it Tuesday: Tariffs will drop from 25 percent to 15 percent for imported cars. Tariffs on imported auto parts will fall to six percent.
U. S. manufacturers and policymakers have been arguing for years that China should lower its tariffs. President Trump railed against the imbalance in trade tariffs in April, tweeting that they amount to “STUPID TRADE.” The U. S. imposes a tariff of just 2.5 percent on vehicles imported from China.
The tariff reduction is seen as an olive branch to the Trump administration. It comes as the two countries work to avoid a trade war after the tough-talk and tariff escalations last month.
