U.S.-China Trade War

The trade war made tariffs a permanent line in landed cost for US importers and pushed many brands to rethink where they source. The first Section 301 tariffs took effect on July 6, 2018, and later lists extended duties to most Chinese goods. The Phase One agreement, signed on January 15, 2020, cut the rate on one list from 15% to 7.5%, but most tariffs stayed in place. Importers responded by front-loading shipments, filing exclusion requests, using foreign-trade zones and duty drawback, and shifting some production to Vietnam, Mexico, and other countries. Accurate HTS classification and country of origin became even more important.

• Section 301 TariffsExtra US duties, mainly on Chinese goods
• Harmonized Tariff ScheduleHTSUS product codes that set import duty rates
• Country of OriginCountry where goods were made

• David Ricardo1772–1823 · Economist, theory of comparative advantage

• China Joins the WTO2001 · China becomes the 143rd member of the WTO
• UPU Terminal Dues Reform2019 · Countries may set their own inbound packet rates

• Trade Act of 19741974 · US law behind Section 301, 201 and 122 tariffs
• Export Administration Regulations (EAR)1979, under ECRA since 2018 · US rules controlling exports of dual-use items
• Section 232 Tariffs2018, expanded 2025 and 2026 · National-security tariffs on metals, autos and more

1. U.S.-China Phase One deal backgrounder (U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission) uscc.gov
2. Section 301 (Hong Kong Trade and Industry Department) tid.gov.hk