US raises tariffs on Chinese solar wafers, polysilicon, tungsten imports

The Biden administration plans to raise tariffs on solar wafers, polysilicon and some tungsten products from China to protect US clean energy businesses.

The notice from the US Trade Representative's office said tariffs on Chinese-made solar wafers and polysilicon will rise to 50 per cent and duties on certain tungsten products will increase to 25 per cent, effective on Jan. 1, following a review of Chinese trade practices.

The tariff increases announced today will further blunt the harmful policies and practices by the People's Republic of China," USTR Katharine Tai said in a statement. "These actions will complement the domestic investments made under the Biden-Harris Administration to promote a clean energy economy, while increasing the resilience of critical supply chains.

Last week, Washington tightened restrictions on Chinese access to advanced semiconductor technology. Beijing responded by banning exports to the US of certain critical minerals needed to make computer chips, such as gallium, germanium and antimony. It also stepped up its controls on graphite exports to the US.

China provides a very large share of most of those materials and the United States has been working to secure alternative sources in Africa and other parts of the world.

Tungsten is another strategically vital metal whose production is dominated by China. The US does not produce it. It's used to make armaments and is also used in x-ray tubes and light bulb filaments, among other industrial applications.

After Beijing announced its ban on exporting gallium and the other materials to the United States, analysts said tungsten was another likely area where China might strike back.

Trade frictions have been escalating ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to impose 60 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods, among other threats. President Joe Biden has said Trump's promise of broad tariffs on foreign imports would be a mistake.

His administration has kept in place tariffs that Trump imposed during his first term in office, in some cases raising them further, but says it has a more targeted approach.

The investigation that led the USTR to raise the tariffs on solar panels concluded with a report in May that has prompted increases in tariffs on a range of products including electric vehicles, syringes and needles, medical gloves and facemasks, semiconductors and steel and aluminum products, among others.