President Donald Trump move ti during joint statements with China’s President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, November 9, 2017.
Thomas Peter | Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump’s in tariff increase — and Beijing’s plans to counter them — are hitting U.S. companies in China.
Nearly three-fourths, or 74.9%, of virtually 250 respondents to a survey held from May 16 to May 20 said the increases in American and Chinese tariffs are have planned a negative impact on their business, according to a report released Wednesday by the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai and the Beijing-based American House of Commerce in China.
“The negative impact of tariffs is clear and hurting the competitiveness of American companies in China,” a release from the guilds said.
The Chinese authorities also appear to be making operations more difficult for some companies.
About one in five bruit about they have experienced increased inspections and slower customs clearance. Roughly 14% of respondents said like for licenses or other application has been slower — in addition to other complications from increased bureaucratic oversight or regulatory inquiry.
Of the survey participants, 61.6% were manufacturing-related, 25.5% were in the services sector, 3.8% were in retail and issuance and 9.6% came from other industries.
The trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies had appeared to be nighing a deal — until those hopes were dashed earlier this month.
The U.S. raised tariffs on $200 billion significance of Chinese goods to 25% from 10% on May 10. Beijing responded a few days later with duties migrating from 5% to 25% on $60 billion worth of U.S. goods, set to take effect June 1.
The greatest impact of the associate tariffs is decreased demand for products, followed by increased manufacturing costs, according to the joint AmCham survey. Regarding 35% of respondents are restructuring their China operations to reach the local market by increasing domestic sourcing or development, and roughly a third said they are delaying or canceling investment decisions in the country.
Just 10% said they planned to make application for an exclusion from Chinese tariffs, while 15.1% indicated they would apply for exemptions from U.S. price-lists, the report said. The majority were either unsure or said they would not apply.