WASHINGTON (Bloomberg) – The Trump administration is considering clamping down on Chinese investments in the US and imposing tariffs on a broad range of its imports to punish Beijing for its alleged theft of intellectual property, according to people familiar with the matter..
WASHINGTON (Bloomberg) – The Trump administration is considering clamping down on Chinese investments in the US and imposing tariffs on a broad range of its imports to punish Beijing for its alleged theft of intellectual property, according to people familiar with the matter.
The US Trade Representative’s office last year began investigating China’s IP practices under a seldom-used trade law that gives President Donald Trump powers to impose trade restrictions to protect American commerce from unfair trading actions by foreign nations. An announcement about the investigation is anticipated in the coming weeks.
The move would escalate tensions already running hot over Trump’s plan to impose stiff tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, risking retaliation from allies and major trading partners like China and rankling Republican lawmakers over the economic costs.
Trump struck a defiant tone this week, tweeting that he’d welcome a trade war.
In a blow to the free-trade wing of Trump’s team, White House chief economic adviser Gary Cohn announced on Tuesday he is resigning.
The dollar fell and an exchange-traded fund linked to US stocks tumbled in after-hours trading.
Under the most severe scenario being weighed, the US could impose tariffs on a wide range of Chinese imports, from shoes and clothing to consumer electronics, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions aren’t public.
The Trump administration could combine the tariffs with restrictions on Chinese investments in the US, which are reviewed for national-security risks by Treasury’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, the people said.
The new measures being considered by the administration could go beyond even domestic security considerations.
The US has long been wary of China’s push to develop its own semiconductor industry that could compete with American firms.
That concern was highlighted in a letter made public on Tuesday, in which the Treasury Department said Singapore-based Broadcom Ltd.
