Following China’s announcement on Friday of retaliatory tariffs against the U.S., President Trump declared, via Twitter, Section 301 tariff increases across the board. China’s announcement included new tariffs on $75 billion in U.S. goods.

According to the President’s tweets, Section 301 List 1, List 2, and List 3, valued around $250 billion in Chinese goods, will face a tariff increase from 25 to 30 percent effective October 1^st. List 4A and List 4B, set to go into effect on September 1^st and December 15^th, respectively, will face a tariff increase from 10 to 15 percent.

The President did not stop there, however. Earlier that morning and also through Twitter, President Trump ordered all American companies to find alternatives to manufacturing in China. The tweet read, in part, “Our great American companies are hereby ordered to immediately start looking for an alternative to China, including bringing your companies HOME and making your products in the USA.” This order appears to be a strong signal to importers to prepare for the long haul in respect to the tariffs levied on Chinese manufactured goods coming into the United States.

Trans-Border will continue to monitor the situation. If you have any questions, please reach out to Bill Carey, Import Compliance Manager, at bcarey@tbgfs.com or (800) 493-9444.