Government/Policy
May 21, 2023
Leibowitz: More Tariffs May Harm Consumers
Written by Lewis Leibowitz
Two separate developments suggest that the Biden administration may have concerns that more tariffs would damage the US economy by harming consumers.
First, we saw the president suspend action to impose additional tariffs on solar cells and modules from four countries in the face of an antidumping “circumvention” proceeding. Circumvention determines whether operations in third countries that add “minor” value should be covered by existing antidumping orders. Early in 2022, domestic petitioners alleged that solar cells and modules fabricated in China were processed in Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia or Vietnam, changing the origin of the processed products from China to one of the four countries mentioned.

