According to reports, the US has recently raised the tariff of 200 billion US dollars on Chinese exports to the United States from 10% to 25%. In attempting to justify his decision to raise tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese imports into the US, President Donald Trump has suggested that the best way to avoid them is not to buy Chinese-made products. In other words, just buy American, Trump argues.
In order to “rationalize” the tariffs imposed on Chinese imports, the Trump administration said that the best way for Americans to avoid tax is to avoid buying Chinese-made goods and buying goods produced in the United States.
On Monday, Trump tweeted: “There is no reason for the US. Consumer to pay the Tariffs,” and that they can be “completely if you buy from a non-Tariffed Country, or you buy the product inside the USA (the Best idea) That’s Zero Tariffs.”
Trump said on Twitter that “it is unreasonable for American consumers to pay customs duties” because “American consumers can avoid switching taxes if they buy goods from countries that are not subject to tariffs. You can buy goods produced in the United States (the best way). Zero tariffs.”
Most of the Chinese products subject to tariffs simply aren’t made in the US, including apparel and electronic components. For those few items where there is an American-made alternative, there is also the problem of scalability: US companies simply lack the capacity to create the number of products that come from China. In that regard, Trump’s suggestion that there is “no reason for the US. Consumer to pay the Tariffs” is false.
According to CNN, most Chinese products targeted by current tariffs, including clothing and electronic components, are not made in the United States. As for the few products that can be found in American manufacturing, there is also the problem of scalability – American companies lack the ability to produce the same amount of products as imports from China. From this perspective, Trump said that “it is unreasonable for American consumers to pay customs duties”.
