Major Automakers File Lawsuit Against US Over Chinese Tariffs - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th September, 2020) Mercedes Benz, Ford, Volvo and Tesla have filed lawsuits against the United States over tariffs imposed on Chinese goods and demand compensation for lost profit, media reported.

The automakers filed separate lawsuits against the administration of US President Donald Trump and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer at the Court of International Trade, AFP reported, over imports from China which Tesla called "arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion."

Tesla has long complained that the tariffs are hurting the company's bottom line and preventing it from lowering the price of its groundbreaking electric vehicles. Tesla was denied a bid for exemption from the 25 percent tariff from importing Chinese-made computers and display screens.

In its lawsuit, Mercedes Benz said that US law "did not confer authority on defendants [Trump, Lighthizer] to litigate a vast trade war for however long, and by whatever means, they choose," the agency reported.

Trump started a trade war with China in 2018 by hiking tariffs on over $200 billion worth of Chinese imports in a bid to even out the trade deficit between the two countries. Though the move was intended to strangle the Chinese economy, many US businesses complained that they had to foot the bill on more expensive Chinese imports.

The two sides signed a phase one agreement earlier this year to wind down the trade spat when Beijing promised to boost its purchases of US goods.

Earlier this month, the World Trade Organization found that the 2018 tariff hike was in violation of international trade rules.