JEAIL > Volume 17(2); 2024 > Digest
Research Paper
Published online: November 30, 2024
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.14330/jeail.2024.17.2.11

Tariffs and Trade: Tensions with China and the Run-Up to the 2024 US Presidential Election

Stuart S. Malawer
SGeorge Mason University
3351 Fairfax Dr., MS 3B1, Arlington, Virginia 22201 USA.
Corresponding Author: StuartMalawer@msn.com

ⓒ Copyright YIJUN Institute of International Law
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/liceInha University Law School, 100 Inharo, Michuhol-gu, Incheon 22212 Korea. / nses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract
Under Trump and Biden, the US trade policy has veered away from its traditional approach, developed since World War II, from multilateralism to focusing primarily on national and unilateral concerns. At the center of this approach have been tensions with China. This includes a renewal of industrial policies, protectionism and, most importantly, reliance on national security, manifested by newer and unexpected geopolitical developments. The discussion of trade policy today has become very toxic, especially during this presidential campaign season, with its renewed focus on tariffs. The trade debate in the US is now entering a new stage with the nomination of Kamala Harris and J.D. Vance. I believe the US drift away from the postwar policies of promoting global trade and investment will continue. Nationalist and protectionist policies will continue as part of a new economic and industrial policy, fused with national security concerns and rhetoric, no matter who wins.

Keywords : Trump’s Tariffs, Biden’s Tariffs, Harris’s Tariffs, Trump–Harris Presidential Election, National Security and Trade, Nippon Steel–US Steel Merger, TikTok and US Ban, De Minimis Imports, Semiconductor Chips and Export Controls

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