Biden vows to shield steel industry in US
PITTSBURGH — President Joe Biden promised cheering steelworkers Wednesday his administration would block the acquisition of U.S. Steel by a Japanese company, and he called for a tripling of tariffs on Chinese steel, seeking to use trade policy to win over working-class votes in Pennsylvania.
Biden said U.S. Steel “has been an iconic American company for more than a century and it should remain totally American.”
“American-owned, American operated by American union steelworkers ... and that’s going to happen I promise you,” he said.
The Democrat’s administration is reviewing the acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan’s Nippon Steel. The president said he would oppose the deal, saying it was “vital for it to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.”
But in front of a prounion audience, he went much further in promising to block the deal. “The backbone of America has a steel spine,” Biden said.
In another move that his administration argues can protect domestic steelworkers, Biden announced he will push for higher tariffs on Chinese steel, aiming to insulate American producers from a flood of cheap imports.
The moves reflected the intersection of Biden’s international trade policy with his reelection, although the White House insisted they were more about shielding American manufacturing from unfair trade practices than firing up a union audience.
The current tariff rate is 7.5% for both steel and aluminum but could climb to 22.5% under Biden’s proposal. The president said he was asking his trade representative to seek the increase.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said the “U.S. is making the same mistake ... again” by seeking increased tariffs. In a statement, he also dismissed those levies already in place as “the embodiment of unilateralism and protectionism of the U.S.”
Biden insisted getting tougher on China was sound policy.
“I made sure ... we had the most advanced technologies that we’ve developed ... and they can’t be sent to China because they’ll undermine our national security,” he said, adding he had delivered a similar message to Chinese President Xi Jinping during past conversations. Biden said he told Xi “you’ll use them for all the wrong reasons, so you’re not (getting) those ... computer chips.”
The administration also promised to pursue investigations against entities that try to saturate existing markets with Chinese steel and said it was working with Mexico to ensure Chinese companies cannot circumvent the tariffs by shipping steel there for export to the United States.
“The president understands we must invest in American manufacturing. But we also have to protect ... investments and ... workers from unfair exports associated with China’s ... overcapacity,” said White House national economic adviser Lael Brainard.