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Law360 (March 19, 2020, 11:53 AM EDT) -- President Donald Trump suggested on Wednesday that China and other governments were fueling calls to slash tariffs in response to the novel coronavirus, roiling U.S. companies that have been vocal opponents of the levies.
A group of U.S. business associations organized as Americans for Free Trade sent Trump a letter on Wednesday urging him to peel back duties on steel, aluminum and roughly $360 billion worth of Chinese products to help blunt the economic damage of the COVID-19 outbreak. When asked about it during a press conference, Trump hinted at a foreign power play.
"Who heads that group? Those countries do, probably. Go check," Trump said of the letter, later adding "I can't imagine Americans asking for that, but it could be that China will ask for a suspension or something. We'll see what happens."
Trump also reiterated his false claim that China was paying the U.S. "billions and billions," eliding the fact that U.S. importers are most often left on the hook for duty payments. He then flatly denied the administration was considering any across-the-board tariff cuts as part of its plan to tackle the outbreak.
After Trump's press conference, the AFT issued a statement rejecting his suggestion that U.S. companies are not feeling the brunt of his tariff push.
"This letter calling for President Trump to suspend tariffs was not sent by China, it was sent by a coalition of 160 American business associations representing thousands of American businesses and millions of American workers," the group said. "The letter shares the concerns of U.S. manufacturers, retailers, farmers and agribusinesses who have been paying for tariffs since the president's trade war began."
The AFT counts among its membership business organizations across most consumer product sectors, including the National Retail Federation, American Apparel & Footwear Association and the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.
Those groups and many others have peppered the administration with requests for broad tariff relief for weeks as the virus has continued to spread and distress the global economy.
The administration has quietly granted tariff exclusions to certain pieces of medical equipment from China, including face masks, gloves, shoe coverings and blood pressure cuff sleeves.
But business groups are nevertheless pushing for more cuts, even on goods that are not related to the treatment or containment of the disease, stressing that a freer flow of trade will help stem the economic downturn caused by the spread of the virus.
--Editing by Rebecca Flanagan.
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