On Friday, the Trump Administration implemented the first phase of Section 301 tariffs on approximately $34 billion worth of Chinese products – including marine engines, navigational equipment, and components. The tariffs are in response to China’s alleged theft of U.S. intellectual property and could be expanded to a total of $50 billion or more.
Regarding the new tariffs, NMMA’s President, Thom Dammrich, stated, “On one hand, we’re happy to see the Trump administration is committed to cracking down on China for stealing U.S. intellectual property—including our members’ inventions. But on the other hand, putting a 25 percent tariff on $34 billion in products used by American manufacturers is the wrong solution. Not surprisingly, with China fighting back and officially kicking off yet another trade war, recreational boating is being uniquely targeted because of our status as a true American-made industry.”
Dammrich continued, “As a result of the administration’s decision to move forward with its Section 301 tariffs, nearly 300 commonly used marine related products will immediately cost 25 percent more. There is no way to simply weather the storm and see how this shakes out as the cost of doing business for our members has instantly increased. For some products, the additional cost to marine manufacturers will be in the thousands of dollars, resulting in employment changes, canceled expansion plans, and halted growth. We are having a hard time understanding why the President is choosing tariffs when they are directly putting millions of American jobs on the line, including the 650,000 supported by the U.S. recreational boating industry.
“To top it off, a trade war does nothing to address the real problem—intellectual property theft. Instead of following in the footsteps of previous administrations and bringing on economic turmoil from tariffs, we need President Trump to get creative and negotiate substantive trade agreements that truly benefit American businesses, consumers, and workers.”
NMMA is continuing to be loud on this issue and is addressing the industry’s concerns head on. For more information, please contact NMMA Senior Vice President of Government and Legal Affairs, Nicole Vasilaros at nvasilaros@nmma.org or NMMA Director of Federal Affairs, Lance West at lwest@nmma.org.
