US tariffs on Chinese EVs may grow from around 25% to 100%

Updated The Biden administration is reportedly set to quadruple Chinese electric vehicle tariffs as part of an onslaught of increased taxes on imports from the country.

According to the Wall Street Journal, critical minerals, solar goods, and batteries sourced from China will also receive the higher tariffs.

Chinese EV tariffs are expected to go from 25 percent to 100 percent, cementing a pricing-out of the EV product in the US market, even as Chinese EV manufacturing soars.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian vowed on Friday that China would take "all necessary measures to defend its rights and interests" when it comes to additional tariffs.

The PRC could also retaliate with more export bans on certain critical materials, or block Chinese companies from using semiconductors from Intel or other American companies.

The existing tariffs were introduced during the Trump administration. The increase was made as part of a planned review of the policy. The former president has detailed that if he were re-elected, tariffs on Chinese goods would increase by 60 percent of more, despite his claims of being besties with Xi Jinping.

Lin said on Friday: "Tariffs imposed by the former US administration on China have severely disrupted normal trade and economic exchanges between China and the US. The WTO has already ruled those tariffs [are] against WTO rules. Instead of ending those wrong practices, the US continues to politicize trade issues, abuse the so-called review process of Section 301 tariffs and plan tariff hikes."

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Steven Okun, who served in the Clinton administration and is currently the CEO of consultancy APAC Advisors, previously noted that the genesis of these actions go back ten years with the 2015 creation of the Made In China campaign. The push was kickstarted when China said it was going to use industrial policy, preferential access and state subsidies to dominate industries like electric vehicles. Tariffs between the US and China go back much further than Trump.

According to the former Clinton Deputy General Counsel, there's no question about it, China will retaliate.

Okun told The Register there will likely be slow-rolling regulatory approvals for US companies.

The PRC could also retaliate with more export bans on certain critical materials, or block Chinese companies from using semiconductors from Intel or other American companies, Okun said. ®

Updated to add

Biden has indeed hiked tariffs on Chinese EVs to 100 percent, and 50 percent on Chinese-made chips.