A diverse coalition of American businesses, led by firms like Indiana’s Guardian Bikes and tomato-canner Red Gold, is urging the US government to impose new tariffs on 700 categories of imported goods. In detailed pleas to the Commerce Department, they claim foreign competition is threatening their survival.
Red Gold, which sources tomatoes from 43 farms, outlined its predicament in a 12-page letter. It pays a 25% tariff on UK tinplate steel and 50% on steel from elsewhere to make its cans. However, foreign businesses can import finished tin-plated cans with “no comparable tariff,” allowing them to sell at lower prices.
Similarly, Guardian Bikes argued the US bike industry “was lost” dueto 11 million imports, blaming China. However, their requested tariff would be global, hitting high-performance European brands like Pinarello and Bianchi just as hard. Other requests come from firms making truck wheels, mattress springs, and industrial machinery.
This is the second such request in three months, and the first round saw 407 items added to the “steel derivatives” list with almost no rejections. This precedent has European exporters steeling themselves for the worst, fearing a decision in December or January will greenlight this new, larger list.
For allies in the UK and EU, this creates a major trade headache. It means a new layer of tariffs could be added on top of their existing baseline rates, a move they see as undermining their formal trade agreements with the US.