In a positive step for the $887 billion outdoor recreation economy, President Trump and President Xi of China agreed to a 90-day “pause” in the U.S.-China trade war over the weekend and will continue talks about resolving outstanding concerns about China’s intellectual property practices.
As a result, a 10 percent tariff that was imposed on certain outdoor products sourced from China, such as backpacks, sports bags, leather ski gloves, camp stoves, camp chairs, bikes and bicycle parts, will NOT rise to 25 percent at the end of the year as previously announced. Another round of $267 billion in tariffs that would likely include outdoor apparel and footwear has also been put on hold.
“The agreement between U.S. President Trump and Chinese President Xi is welcome news for American consumers and outdoorists of every stripe,” said Amy Roberts, executive director of Outdoor Industry Association. “OIA will continue to press the case that thousands of large and small retailers and manufacturers of outdoor products play a significant role in bolstering the U.S. economy and that U.S. trade policies should serve to help them continue to innovate and prosper.”
The United States has already imposed $250 billion in retaliatory tariffs on products sourced from China in response to Beijing’s intellectual property practices. China has responded in kind on certain U.S. exports.
OIA and outdoor companies have actively opposed any additional tariffs on outdoor products. OIA will continue to engage the administration and members of Congress in an effort to remove the 10 percent tariff on outdoor products and protect outdoor companies and consumers from these higher costs.
