The Commerce Department, after suggesting that the import of semiconductors, products containing semiconductors, and equipment and inputs used to make chips could be making the U.S. vulnerable to supply chain disruptions, is now hearing from dozens of stakeholders who say the administration has it completely backwards. Time after time, in more than 150 submitted comments for the Section 232 investigation, stakeholders said imposing tariffs is what would lead to shortages, manufacturing woes, and a loss of competitiveness in the design and manufacture of chips.
The Commerce Department is launching Section 232 investigations on imports of semiconductors and pharmaceuticals as a possible precursor to levying duties on these products, according to Federal Register notices released April 14.
China’s State Council this week released a white paper on economic and trade relations with the U.S., criticizing the U.S. government’s imposition of tariffs and export controls and saying that the two sides should strive toward “mutually beneficial cooperation.” The white paper seeks to “clarify the facts about China-US economic and trade relations and illustrate China's policy stance on relevant issues,” it says, according to an unofficial translation.
A recent rise in tariffs, export controls and other trade actions will lead to rising prices in semiconductor supply chains, said Sree Ramaswamy, former senior adviser to former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
Nearly 750 organizations and businesses gave input to the administration on trade barriers or subsidies that prevent them from reaching their sales potential.
The reciprocal tariffs that the U.S. intends to levy on imports -- which could be announced as soon as April 2 -- may not be a one-for-one match of the tariff rate of another country for that product. Rather, they could take into account wage suppression, exchange rate management, "mercantilist policies," non-tariff barriers, value-added tax and extraterritorial taxes.
President Donald Trump announced his intention to use tariffs to force countries to accept planes full of their deported citizens, as well as new sector specific targets beyond steel and aluminum.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative opened an investigation into Chinese manufacturing of legacy (or foundational) semiconductors, "including to the extent that they are incorporated as components into downstream products for critical industries like defense, automotive, medical devices, aerospace, telecommunications, and power generation and the electrical grid."
Nearly half of U.S. companies surveyed by the Bureau of Industry and Security this year said they didn’t know whether their products contained any Chinese-made, mature-node semiconductors, BIS said in a summary of those survey results released Dec. 6.
One day after the U.S. published a new set of semiconductor-related export controls aimed at China (see 2412020016), Beijing announced a ban on certain key critical minerals and other dual-use items being shipped to the U.S. for military uses.