U.S. trade coalition urges Biden administration to end "misguided trade war" as tariffs hurt businesses

People visit Chinese drone maker DJI's booth at the 2020 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, the United States, Jan. 8, 2020. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaoling)

"Those tariffs failed to fulfill their stated goal of creating leverage in dealing with China, and as revealed by a Moody's report earlier this year, importers have been forced to take on more than 90 percent of the costs created by 20 percent tariffs on Chinese goods," Americans for Free Trade spokesperson Jonathan Gold said.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- Americans for Free Trade, a coalition of more than 150 industry associations that are united in the fight against tariffs, on Tuesday urged the Biden administration to end the "misguided trade war" initiated by the previous administration as tariffs continue to hurt American businesses across the country.

Many American businesses are still "struggling to bear the costs of tariffs" on more than 350 billion U.S. dollars in Chinese goods imposed by the previous administration, Americans for Free Trade spokesperson Jonathan Gold said in a statement.

"Those tariffs failed to fulfill their stated goal of creating leverage in dealing with China, and as revealed by a Moody's report earlier this year, importers have been forced to take on more than 90 percent of the costs created by 20 percent tariffs on Chinese goods," Gold said.

Gold's comments came after U.S. media recently reported that the U.S. government is considering launching the so-called Section 301 investigation into Chinese subsidies, which could lead to new tariffs on imports from China.

"New tariffs will not change that. Tariffs hurt businesses throughout the country and it's time for a new approach to working with our trading partners that relieves the weight of the current tariffs and finally brings an end to this misguided trade war," he said.

Gary Hufbauer, a former U.S. Treasury official and non-resident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, told Xinhua that he didn't expect another round of Section 301 tariffs against Chinese imports under the current U.S. administration as tariffs are not popular with U.S. businesses or consumers.

People visit the booth of Lenovo at the Retail's Big Show 2020 in New York, the United States, on Jan. 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

More than 30 U.S. trade groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S.-China Business Council (USCBC), have recently called on the U.S. government to remove the "costly and burdensome tariffs," which they say are hurting American companies, consumers and the overall economy.

"The Administration can take immediate steps to relieve increasing inflationary pressures and rising prices for all Americans by reducing these tariffs," the trade groups said last month in a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Trade Representative Katherine Tai.

During a virtual meeting with board members of the USCBC on Monday, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Qin Gang urged Washington to "make earnest efforts" to improve bilateral ties, stressing the role of economic and trade cooperation as the "ballast and propeller" of China-U.S. relations.

"If we compare China-U.S. relations to a giant ship, then economic and trade cooperation has been its ballast and propeller. When the ship sails against heavy winds and huge waves, we need to add more strength to the ballast and propeller," Qin told the audience.

"It is hoped that necessary conditions and atmosphere can be created for the implementation of the phase-one agreement and bilateral economic and trade exchanges, rather than making things worse," he added.