U.S. reinstates 352 product exclusions from China tariffs, several textile products are listed.

March 23,2022, The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR)  announced a news on Wednesday:   it has decided to reinstate certain previously granted and extended "Section 301" tariff exclusions for Chinese products. 

Among them, several textile products are listed.

According to a recent Moody's report, the tariffs "hurt American businesses and consumers the most," with China only bearing 7.6% of the burden. According to a statement from the office, the decision reinstates 352 of the 549 qualified exclusions, and the reinstated product exclusions will take effect on Oct. 12, 2021, and will last through Dec. 31, 2021.

Former United States President Donald Trump initiated a trade war with China and imposed further tariffs on more than $300 billion in Chinese goods, using Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 as justification. Trump issued tariff exemptions for select products to provide relief to some businesses in specific areas.With the exception of products related to the fight against COVID-19, most tariff exemptions expired at the end of 2020.

In October 2021, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai sought the public to comment on whether or not to reinstate 549 exclusions that had been granted and extended by the Trump administration in the preceding two years."We welcomed USTR's announcement in October to open an exclusions process for a limited set of products. However, only about 1% of the original exclusion applications are eligible for this procedure "In an early March letter to congressional leaders, Americans for Free Trade, a broad coalition of trade organizations, stated.

"A more rigorous approach is required to deliver substantial relief," the group said, adding that it would continue to advocate for an end to new tariffs and retaliatory levies . According to a recent Moody's assessment, the tariffs "hurt American businesses and consumers the hardest," with China absorbing only 7.6 percent of the levies "while Americans picked up the rest of the price."

Recent papers have also pointed out that tariffs are having a small but real impact on inflationary pressures."A new, comprehensive, open, and equitable exclusions process will help American businesses and consumers reduce the economic burden," the coalition stated.