Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) President Dennis Slater issued the following statement opposing the escalating global trade war created by the Trump administration's decision to propose a new round of $200 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods:

“Nobody wins in a global trade war. American workers, farmers, consumers and the U.S. economy lose. Not only will these tariffs threaten many of the 1.3 million jobs our industry supports, they also hurt farmers who are already reeling from low commodity prices. On top of this, these tariffs are eliminating many of the economic gains created by last year's tax reform. Tariffs are taxes on consumers and businesses. We need policies that encourage manufacturing in the United States. Not the opposite.”

On July 6, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection started to collect duties on $34 billion worth of goods, as outlined in a published list made available by the federal register on April 6. In response, China retaliated by imposing $34 billion of tariffs on U.S. goods, including commodities, including numerous agricultural goods – at a time when the agricultural equipment sector has already been hit hard by a continuing slump in farm income. In addition, another $16 billion worth of tariffs proposed by the Trump administration on Chinese goods is already undergo further review in a public notice and comment process, including a public hearing.

Combining the newly proposed $200 billion in additional tariffs on Chinese goods with the $50 billion already in place or threatened by the Trump administration, the total makes up for about half of the dollar amount in goods imported to the U.S. from China just last year.