U.S. producers of graphite, a major ingredient in electric vehicle batteries, are calling on the federal government to probe whether China is illegally tanking mineral prices and, if so, slap tariffs of up to 920 percent on processed graphite coming from the country.
It’s a request that will play out in coming months and likely get a warm reception from incoming President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to impose tariffs on Chinese goods in an escalating trade war between the two countries that’s shining a national spotlight on otherwise obscure supply chains.
Members of the trade group, the American Active Anode Material Producers, filed a 14,000-page petition with two federal agencies Wednesday, alleging that China, with the use of lucrative state subsidies, is artificially cratering the price of processed graphite and making it impossible for other companies to compete.
The group is ultimately pushing for the Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission to impose tariffs as high as 920 percent on Chinese graphite.
