Overview
- The trade office began a four-day hearing Tuesday in Washington on a Section 301 probe into excess industrial capacity across 16 trading partners, taking testimony from nearly 150 stakeholders.
- U.S. manufacturers, led by steelmakers, urged tougher curbs to counter a global glut, while apparel, footwear, and farm groups warned new duties would raise consumer costs and risk retaliation against exports like soybeans.
- China challenged the inquiry at the hearing through its state-backed China Chamber of International Commerce, calling the case legally flawed days ahead of a planned Trump–Xi summit in Beijing.
- USTR Jamieson Greer aims to finish the investigation by July and is weighing data on capacity use and company profitability, with USTR notices highlighting trouble for auto makers in China and Japan.
- Trade watchers expect the review to result in fresh import duties as the administration rebuilds tariff authority after the Supreme Court struck down an earlier global tariff program.