US to launch 'strike force' aimed at trade abuses, including from China

White House is planning to launch a new “strike force” to combat unfair trade practices, mainly targeting China, Reuters reports, citing senior administration officials.

Key takeaways

“The "supply chain trade strike force," led by the US trade representative, will look for specific violations that have contributed to a "hollowing out" of supply chains that could be addressed with trade remedies, including toward China.”

“The Department of Commerce was considering initiating a Section 232 investigation into the national security impact of neodymium magnet imports used in motors and other industrial applications, which the United States largely sources from China.”

This comes after the Biden administration rolled out findings of a review of US access to critical products, from semiconductors to electric-vehicle batteries.

Earlier today, Bloomberg reported that a National People’s Congress (NPC) committee filed the second draft of legislation aimed at countering sanctions imposed by foreign governments, in light of the country’s growing rivalry with the US.

Market implications

Growing US-Sino worries are likely to worsen the market mood, with the S&P 500 futures trading modestly flat, at the press time.

AUD/USD is holding the lower ground below 0.7750, although recovering from daily lows of 0.7727.