USTR officially postpones tariff hike on Chinese goods

The Section 301 tariffs across $200 billion of Chinese goods had been set to increase to 25 percent at the beginning of the new year.

   The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on Wednesday issued a notice officially postponing the increase of 10 percent tariffs across $200 billion worth of goods from China in 2017 import value to March 2.
   The Section 301 tariffs had been set to rise to 25 percent on Jan. 1, until U.S. and Chinese delegations agreed during a Dec. 1 meeting to hold off on imposing additional tariffs for 90 days while pursuing a lowering of trade tensions.
   USTR had announced the planned increase on Sept. 21.
   “The Trade Representative’s decision to modify the September 2018 action takes into account the extensive public comments and testimony, as well as advice from advisory committees, concerning the actions proposed in the notices issued in advance of the September 2018 action,” the USTR notice says. “The Trade Representative’s decision also reflects the advice of the interagency Section 301 Committee.”