MEMA Responds to Phase One U.S.-China Trade Deal and Calls for Continued Hard Work Toward Phase Two

The incremental progress in this Phase One U.S. – China agreement restores trade certainty to our bilateral relationship and will benefit motor vehicle parts manufacturers. 

The President and USTR Robert Lighthizer and their team deserves to celebrate this Phase One achievement with Vice Premier Liu He and other Chinese counterparts. We urge them to the start of negotiations on Phase Two.

The suspension and lowering of tariffs on List 4 are positive steps that benefits U.S. consumers.  

However, we remain concerned about that 25 percent tariffs that are still imposed on $250 billion in imports from China on Lists 1-3. These three lists contain hundreds of categories of motor vehicle parts and components as well as materials and chemicals. Those tariffs are problematic to our members’ supply chains and increase prices for U.S. consumers.   

Finally, MEMA strongly supports President Trump’s efforts to level the trade playing field with China by working to eliminate a range of anti-competitive Chinese practices that were highlighted in USTR’s China Section 301 Report.  We do not underestimate the magnitude of the task in Phase 2, but we appreciate the focus of President Trump and Ambassador Lighthizer on China over the past three years and know that they will take the time to get it right.