WASHINGTON, D.C. — Progress toward a U.S.-China trade deal during the G-20 Summit in Osaka, Japan, raised hopes by equipment manufacturers for a prospective deal to end the ongoing trade war between the two economic superpowers.

“We’re encouraged by the return to a more constructive dialogue between the United States and China. Pumping the brakes on any further tariffs is good news for U.S. consumers, American farmers, and our industry’s 1.3 million men and women,” said Kip Eideberg, Assn. of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM)’s vice president of government and industry relations. “While we support the administration’s efforts to encourage long-term structural reforms to China’s trade and industrial policies, the protracted trade war fueled by dueling rounds of tariffs has so far not accomplished anything other than making it more expensive to manufacture in the United States. The best way to ensure that equipment manufactures are successful and continue to create jobs in America is to immediately put an end to all tariffs."

The U.S. has already placed tariffs on $250 billion in goods from China, including many different types of construction and agricultural equipment and parts. In response, China continues to put in place reciprocal tariffs targeting a variety of U.S. products including manufactured goods and agricultural products.

Before the G-20 meeting in Japan, President Trump had threatened to expand those tariffs to additional $300 billion of imports from China or about all Chinese imports to the U.S. AEM continues to highlight the economic damages caused by these ongoing tariffs and is pressing the administration to find alternative ways to pressure our trading partners for unfair trading practices.

AEM is the North American-based international trade group representing off-road equipment manufacturers and suppliers, with more than 1,000 companies and more than 200 product lines in the agriculture and construction-related industry sectors worldwide. The equipment manufacturing industry supports 1.3 million jobs in the U.S. and 149,000 more in Canada. Equipment manufacturers also contribute $188 billion combined to the U.S. and Canadian economies. AEM is celebrating its 125th anniversary in 2019.