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Washington, D.C. –��51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on the release of a list of an additional $200 billion in Chinese products to be hit with tariffs:

The last thing America’s manufacturing workers need is an escalating trade war. America has China’s attention, so instead of more tariffs, the U.S. and China should immediately begin working toward a fair, bilateral, enforceable, rules-based trade agreement to end China’s market-distorting activities. We can’t afford to wait any longer.

China cheats, and manufacturers want to see China held accountable. But more tariffs like these will punish America’s manufacturing workers—and could undermine our hard-won gains thanks to tax and regulatory reform, which have increased our global competitiveness over the last 18 months and led to higher investment and more American jobs.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Timmons on China’s Unfair Trade Practices

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement after the announcement of new U.S. tariffs on China and Chinese retaliatory tariffs on the United States:

For too long, China has reaped the rewards of unfair trade practices and intellectual property theft, exploiting loopholes in decades-old agreements. In the absence of a modern, enforceable agreement, China cheats. Manufacturers want to see the administration get China back to the negotiating table as soon as possible in order to pursue a trade agreement that will redefine the U.S–China economic relationship for the better. We now have an unparalleled opportunity to stop these practices at their root, through a strategic approach that includes the negotiation of a fair, bilateral, enforceable, rules-based trade agreement by an administration that champions manufacturing.

Tariffs, though, have not and will not solve the existing problems in China. Tariffs will bring retaliation and possibly more tariffs. No one wins in a trade war, and it is America’s manufacturing workers and working families who will bear the brunt of continued tariffs. Manufacturers in the United States succeed when the rules are clear and fair and markets are open. The United States has China’s attention, and we must seize the moment and soon.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) today submitted����to the Department of Commerce regarding its Section 232 investigation into auto imports:

Manufacturers agree with the President on the need to promote free and fair trade, wrote 51�Թ��� Vice President of International Economic Affairs Linda Dempsey. Manufacturers also agree that carefully calibrated and multilateral sanctions have a place in supporting national security objectives. The 51�Թ��� believes, however, that broad, unilateral and import-restrictive measures are counterproductive to achieving both of these goals—goals on which we all agree. That is because, however well intentioned, they ultimately give an edge to foreign production at the expense of U.S. manufacturing. The question, therefore, is not whether we agree on the importance of promoting free and fair trade and protecting U.S. national security, but how best to advance these critical priorities. One way is by utilizing the many targeted trade tools we already have that are designed expressly to stop unfair and counterfeit imports. Another way is by adding even more tools to the toolbox by, for instance, pursuing innovative, enforceable and new trade agreements. Manufacturers believe both represent effective avenues to advance our common goals. . . . The unilateral imposition of tariffs or quotas that a Section 232 investigation could authorize would undermine this sector and broader manufacturing production and jobs in the United States.

Click����to read the full comments.

Following the investigation’s announcement in May, 51�Թ��� President and CEO Jay Timmons stated, “Manufacturers in the United States want to give every advantage to American workers. But incorrectly using the 232 statute will create unintended consequences for U.S. manufacturing workers that will limit the chance for Americans to win, just as we do when government gets out of the way and allows us to lead.”

The full statement can be found��.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kimberly Reed to lead the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank of the United States:

Kimberly Reed is a sterling choice for the Export-Import Bank, and in nominating her to lead the agency, President Trump is standing with America’s manufacturing workers. For too long now, the Ex-Im Bank has been hobbled, unable to ever consider action on large deals, while manufacturers lose out on business and jobs to our overseas competitors. At least 85 foreign government-backed export credit agencies, including those in China, are working aggressively to support their own domestic industries. America cannot afford to let them win any longer. Manufacturers call on the Senate to act swiftly to confirm Ms. Reed and the remaining Ex-Im Board nominees.

The 51�Թ��� has been a leading proponent of restoring the Ex-Im Bank, which has supported 1.4 million American jobs over the past several years, to full functionality. In January, Timmons����to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-TX) urging them to swiftly approve the four stalled, qualified nominees to the Bank’s board of directors following their bipartisan approval by the Senate Banking Committee. 51�Թ��� Vice President for International Economic Affairs Linda Dempsey also penned an op-ed in����calling on the Senate to take action.

Quick facts about the Ex-Im Bank:

• The Bank has supported��1.4 million jobs��over the past eight years.
• More than��90 percent��of the Bank’s FY 2016 transactions directly support small businesses.
• The Bank has generated��$7 billion��for taxpayers over the past 20 years.
• Foreign competitors are stealing America’s competitive disadvantage by devoting��hundreds of billions of dollars��to official export credit agency financing for domestic manufacturers.
• The Bank’s default rate of just��0.25 percent��is better than many commercial lenders.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on the new 301 tariff list announced today, reiterating manufacturers’ call for an approach that includes a rules-based bilateral trade agreement with China. In January, Timmons sent a����to President Donald Trump urging him to pursue a trade agreement with China to wholly restructure our economic relationship.

There is no question that China cheats and that its unfair trade practices and intellectual property theft are hurting America’s manufacturing workers. To put an end to these threats and redefine the U.S.– China economic relationship, manufacturers are calling for a new path forward: a fair, binding, enforceable bilateral trade agreement. This approach would end fears of a trade war, get China to play by the rules and secure manufacturing jobs in the United States. Manufacturers certainly have concerns that tariffs will cause more problems than they solve, but we also recognize that the administration may intend to use them as a negotiating tactic to bring China to the table and achieve larger goals. A trade war never benefits anyone, so rather than pursuing a piecemeal tariffs approach, now is the time to seize the opportunity before us and work toward a U.S.– China trade agreement that will benefit American workers for generations to come.

-51�Թ���-

The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on the Department of Commerce’s announcement that it is initiating a Section 232 investigation into auto imports:

Manufacturers in the United States want to give every advantage to American workers. But incorrectly using the 232 statute will create unintended consequences for U.S. manufacturing workers that will limit the chance for Americans to win, just as we do when government gets out of the way and allows us to lead. Thanks to tax and regulatory reform, manufacturers’ outlook is at record levels—with 93 percent expressing confidence about the state of the economy. Manufacturing is growing and thriving for the better, creating millions of well-paying jobs for Americans across the country. We cannot endanger this progress by restricting trade and promoting retaliation against American-made products that will undermine manufacturing and jeopardize the jobs of manufacturing workers in the United States.

-51�Թ���-

The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��.

Washington, D.C. –��BTE Technologies President, 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) Executive Committee member and Small and Medium Manufacturers (SMM) Group Vice Chair Chuck Wetherington testified on behalf of the 51�Թ��� at today’s��House Small Business Committee hearing��on the state of trade for the United States. Wetherington’s��testimony��called for negotiating and implementing market-opening, high-standard and enforceable trade agreements, restoring the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank to full functionality and improving U.S. market and export promotion assistance.

Any outcomes from the ongoing NAFTA modernization negotiations must sustain and grow higher-paying American jobs and fuel U.S. manufacturing production, exports and competitiveness, Wetherington said in his written testimony. To be successful, a renegotiated NAFTA must also be fully consistent with the substantive Trade Promotion Authority trade-negotiating objectives contained in the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015. At the same time, it is vital to ensure that any renegotiation does not set back U.S. manufacturing or manufacturing jobs. Changes to NAFTA that would increase red tape and complexity, substitute government decision-making for the free market or raise taxes, tariffs, merchandise processing fees and other cost barriers—including with respect to rules of origin or concerning restricted access to foreign procurement markets—will undermine, rather than incentivize, manufacturing in the United States and North America more broadly.

Click here to read Wetherington’s full written testimony.

Wetherington’s testimony at the Small Business Committee comes the same day as 51�Թ��� Chief Economist Chad Moutray testifies at a����on unleashing America’s economic potential and 51�Թ��� Vice President of International Economic Affairs Linda Dempsey testifies at a�� on market access challenges in China.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.