Biden will hike or add tariffs in the targeted sectors after nearly two years of review. The total tariff on Chinese EVs will rise to 102.5 percent from 27.5 percent, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the announcement. Others will double or triple in targeted industries, though the scope remains unclear.
The 2024 presidential race looms large over the flagship announcement: Biden is trying to crack down on China and differentiate himself from Donald Trump—whose original tariffs Biden is set to largely renew, but who is seeking widespread hikes that the current administration views as going too far. The Biden administration has been “focused on sectors of longstanding concern,” said Greta Peisch, a partner at law firm Wiley Rein LLP who served until January as the top trade lawyer for the US Trade Representative’s office.
Biden will target key sectors including electric vehicles, batteries, solar cells, steel and aluminum, people have said. He has previously announced the steel and aluminum tariffs, which will increase to 25 percent on some products that have a 7.5 percent rate or no tariffs now. The EV rate aims to protect the US from a potential flood of Chinese autos that could upend the politically sensitive auto sector.
“I will put a 200 percent tax on every car that comes in from those plants, and they’re not going to do that,” he said. Trump has also pledged a 60 percent across-the-board tariff on all Chinese goods—a move Biden is stopping well short of, with allies saying it would fuel inflation. It didn’t damp enthusiasm for the US debut of Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding Ltd., the high-end electric car brand under Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., which rose 35 percent Friday after an expanded initial public offering that’s the biggest US listing by a China-based company since 2021. One of its executives downplayed the planned tariffs.