The Biden administration will still view China as a competitor in many areas but also as a country to collaborate with as we address some of the serious issues facing the world today, for example public health, the Covid-19 crisis, and climate change and environmental issues. There is also a realization that China and the U.S. depend on each other economically.
The incoming administration recognizes that the U.S. must deal with China on trade issues that have spanned both the Obama and Trump administrations. Tariffs may be lessened over time by the Biden administration, but most likely not in the first six months or even first year. Regarding the 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, Biden is expected to rollback of some of those tariffs with our key allies Canada, Mexico, Europe, the UK, etc.
The Biden administration is looking more for multilateral cooperation on trade related issues to then take on China on issues like intellectual property theft.
There’s bipartisan support around trying to reassure U.S. manufacturing industries to create more jobs here in the United States. The Trump administration’s approach was proposing a surtax on any U.S. company that went offshore to manufacture regardless of the purpose, which is a trend the U.S. has seen as a result of the pandemic and as a result of some issues related to China in general.
The Biden administration will focus more on tax credits to help revitalize struggling entities that may have been impacted by past free trade agreements, globalization, or automation. Certain manufacturing facilities will also see a tax credit to retool and re-shore back to the United States, creating more U.S jobs or increasing U.S payrolls within existing manufacturing industries.
