Biden Calls for Steep Hike to Tariff on Chinese Steel


眼下贸易问题已成为美国大选的热点议题，预计美国总统拜登将开始对中国采取广泛的保护主义措施。


周三，美国总统拜登在匹兹堡向美国钢铁工人联合会的代表发表讲话，称自己计划要求贸易官员将中国钢铁和铝产品的关税从7.5%提高到25%。

美国总统拜登呼吁对从中国进口的钢铁和铝产品提高关税。眼下贸易问题已成为美国大选的热点议题，预计拜登将开始对中国采取广泛的保护主义措施。 6park.com
President Biden called for raising tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum from China, beginning what is expected to be a broadside of protectionist steps against Beijing during a presidential election in which trade is a flashpoint.  6park.com
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拜登周三走访摇摆州宾夕法尼亚州时讨论了这些措施，他要求贸易官员将中国钢铁和铝产品的关键关税税率提高两倍多，从7.5%提高到25%。而在特朗普(Donald Trump)政府时期已分别对钢铁和铝产品征收了25%和10%的关税。一位政府高级官员表示，提高关税只会影响美国0.6%的钢铁需求。 6park.com
Biden, who discussed the steps Wednesday during a visit in swing-state Pennsylvania, is asking his trade officials to more than triple a key tariff rate on Chinese steel and aluminum products to 25% from 7.5%. That higher levy would be in addition to a separate 25% tariff on steel and a 10% duty on aluminum imposed under the Trump administration. A senior administration official said the higher tariffs would only affect 0.6% of U.S. demand for steel. 6park.com
   
拜登说：“这些都是战略性、有针对性的行动，将保护美国工人，确保公平竞争。” 6park.com
“These are strategic and targeted actions that are going to protect American workers and ensure fair competition,” Biden said. 6park.com
当前美国政府正在研究提高一系列中国输美产品关税，包括电动汽车、电池和太阳能产品。拜登政府的高级官员说，提高金属关税将作为拜登政府调整关税决定的一部分。这些关税可以追溯到前总统特朗普执政期间。 6park.com
Biden’s move comes as the administration is studying raising tariffs on a range of Chinese exports to the U.S., including electric vehicles, batteries and solar products. The higher metal levies would go into effect as part of the Biden administration’s decision on how to adjust tariffs that date from former President Donald Trump’s time in the White House, senior Biden administration officials said. 6park.com
   
中国出口近期激增引发了拜登政府的警觉，这帮助解决了对于关税在经济上是否明智的内部争论。美国财政部长耶伦(Janet Yellen)上周在中国指责中国官员用大量廉价出口威胁美国工业；她此前曾寻求降低对中国商品的关税。 6park.com
A recent surge in Chinese exports has alarmed the Biden administration, helping resolve internal debates over the economic wisdom of tariffs. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who had previously sought to lower tariffs on Chinese goods, was in China last week castigating officials for threatening American industry with a rush of inexpensive exports. 6park.com
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“在钢铁等制造领域，中国的产量已经超过中国或世界能够轻易消化的水平，”白宫国家经济委员会(National Economic Council)主任布雷纳德(Lael Brainard)向记者表示。“中国的补贴和其他形式的支持导致出口产品以人为压低的价格充斥全球市场，削弱了美国钢铁的竞争力。” 6park.com
“In manufacturing sectors like steel, China’s already producing more than China or the world can easily absorb,” Lael Brainard, the director of the White House’s National Economic Council, told reporters. “China’s subsidies and other forms of support lead to exports flooding global markets at artificially low prices, undercutting American steel.” 6park.com
   
中国对美方这一对抗性反应的回应是谴责日益高涨的保护主义，中国官员表示，中国的出口是市场竞争塑造的。 6park.com
China’s response to the backlash has been to decry rising protectionism, arguing their exports are the result of market dynamics. 6park.com
   
眼下白宫面临的政治和外交局势都很复杂。拜登现在面临的共和党对手是首先对中国商品征收全面关税的人，后者现在正把进一步提高关税当做竞选口号。拜登和特朗普正在争夺赞成保护主义措施的工会的支持。 6park.com
The trade moves come during a complicated political and diplomatic moment for the White House. Biden is facing off against a Republican opponent who first put into place broad tariffs on Chinese goods and is now campaigning on raising them even more. Biden and Trump are competing for the support of unions who favor protectionist measures. 6park.com
   
拜登在美国钢铁工人联合会(United Steelworkers)匹兹堡总部宣传了钢铁关税，该工会代表了钢铁行业的许多工人，并在最近支持拜登竞选连任。工会主席David McCall说：“拜登总统继续采取大胆行动，确保美国工人享有公平的竞争环境，我们对此表示感谢。” 6park.com
Biden advertised the steel tariffs at the Pittsburgh headquarters of the United Steelworkers, a union that represents many workers in the steel industry and that recently endorsed the president for re-election. “We’re grateful that President Biden is continuing to take bold action to ensure a level playing field for American workers,” said David McCall, the president of the union.  6park.com
  
与此同时，拜登已经在寻求稳定与中国政府的关系，而提高对中国商品的关税可能会破坏这两个超级大国经过数月谨慎外交行动积累起来的善意。 6park.com
At the same time, Biden has sought to stabilize relations with Beijing, and raising tariffs on Chinese goods could eat up the good will the two superpowers have managed to establish after months of careful diplomacy.
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在关税的重压下，从中国进口的钢材已经大幅下降。根据美国人口普查局和美国钢铁协会(American Iron and Steel Institute)的数据，2023年，美国从中国进口钢材59.8万吨，比2022年下降8.2%。相比之下，美国从加拿大进口钢材690万吨，从墨西哥进口钢材420万吨，这两个国家是美国最大的外国钢材来源国。 6park.com
Steel imports from China have already fallen significantly under the weight of tariffs. In 2023, 598,000 tons of steel were imported from China, down 8.2% from 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the American Iron and Steel Institute. By comparison, the U.S. imported 6.9 million tons of steel from Canada and 4.2 million tons from Mexico, the two biggest sources of foreign steel.   6park.com
   
行业组织美国钢铁协会(American Iron and Steel Institute)主席Kevin Dempsey表示，中国出口到其他国家的钢铁仍然会削弱美国工业。他对拜登的发言表示赞赏。 6park.com
Kevin Dempsey, president of the American Iron and Steel Institute, a trade group, said Chinese steel exported to other countries can still undercut U.S. industry. He applauded Biden’s statement.  6park.com
   
他说，中国通过补贴钢铁和其他产品的生产以及向美国和其他市场倾销这些产品扰乱世界市场。 6park.com
“China disrupts world markets both by subsidizing the production of steel and other products and by dumping those products in the U.S. and other markets,” he said. 6park.com
   
对钢铁问题的担忧也蔓延到了美国与盟友及合作伙伴的关系中。拜登周三呼吁采取的措施之一就是防止中国钢铁通过墨西哥边境流入美国。一些议员和公司担心，中国正在向墨西哥出售钢铁，然后从墨西哥再出口到美国，而无须缴纳任何关税。 6park.com
The concerns about steel are also spilling over into relations with allies and partners. Among the steps the president called for Wednesday was for Mexico to prevent the flow of Chinese steel into the U.S. through its borders. Some lawmakers and companies are worried that China is selling steel into Mexico, where it is then re-exported into the U.S. without any tariffs.  6park.com
   
拜登还反对日本制铁(Nippon Steel)收购美国钢铁公司(U.S. Steel)，并重申，这种行业标志性企业应继续为美国本土所有。拜登有能力根据国家安全权力阻止这桩交易，但他尚未承诺会走出这一步。 6park.com
Biden is also opposing Japanese company Nippon Steel’s effort to buy U.S. Steel, repeating his argument that the industrial icon should remain domestically owned. The president has the ability to block the transaction under national-security powers, though Biden hasn’t committed to actually doing so. 


拜登还反对日本制铁收购美国钢铁公司。

由耶伦领导的美国外国投资委员会(Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S.)负责进行国家安全审查，可以建议拜登阻止并购。周二，耶伦不予就该委员会如何看待这笔交易置评。 6park.com
Yellen leads the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., the national-security panel that can recommend the president block mergers. She declined to comment Tuesday on how the panel would view the deal.  6park.com
   
耶伦在新闻发布会上表示：“我当然同意拜登总统的观点，他已经说过，美国钢铁公司应该继续掌握在美国人手中。他没有明确说这是个国家安全问题，而是一个与工人和国家利益相关的问题。” 6park.com
“I certainly accept the president’s view, which he has stated, that the company should remain in American hands. He hasn’t said specifically that it is an issue of national security, but one that has to do with the good of the workers and the country,” she said during a press conference.  6park.com
   
周三宣布的消息还包括，美国贸易代表将对中国的造船行为展开调查。一些工会曾要求政府研究中国造船业是否存在损害美国公司和工人利益的不公平做法。 6park.com
As part of Wednesday’s announcement, the U.S. Trade Representative will also open an investigation into Chinese shipbuilding practices. A group of unions had asked for the administration to study whether the Chinese shipbuilding industry was using unfair practices that harmed U.S. firms and workers.