The head of the most influential U. S. business lobbying group warned the Trump administration on Thursday that unilateral tariffs on Chinese goods could lead to a destructive trade war that will hurt American consumers and U. S. economic growth.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The head of the most influential U. S. business lobbying group warned the Trump administration on Thursday that unilateral tariffs on Chinese goods could lead to a destructive trade war that will hurt American consumers and U. S. economic growth.
U. S. Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Donohue said in a statement that such tariffs, associated with a probe of China’s intellectual property practices, would be “damaging taxes on American consumers.”
His comments came after White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said that Trump would in coming weeks get options to address China’s “theft and forced transfer” of American intellectual property as part of the investigation under Section 301 of the U. S. Trade Act of 1974.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that Trump was considering tariffs on up to $60 billion worth of Chinese information technology, telecommunications and consumer products, along with U. S. investment restrictions for Chinese companies.
Donohue said the Trump administration was right to focus on the negative economic impact of China’s industrial policies and unfair trade practices, but said tariffs were the wrong approach to dealing with these.
