US firms braced for more tariffs as election approaches

Trump moots stepping up levies; Harris has finalised further hikes on Chinese products

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WASHINGTON - From holding back investments to considering moving abroad, businesses in the US are bracing themselves for more economic turbulence as the presidential campaign kicks into high gear with fresh tariffs rolled out and promises of more.

Republican candidate Donald Trump has proposed at least a 10 per cent tariff on imports and up to 60 per cent on Chinese goods, intensifying levies he previously imposed on Beijing and others.

Meanwhile, Democratic nominee Kamala Harris serves an administration that largely maintained Trump's tariffs and last month finalised further hikes on US$18 billion (S$23.5 billion) of Chinese products.

For Mr Robert Actis, whose manufacturing business has been caught in the tariff maelstrom, the future has looked clouded over the past five years.

Under Trump, he faced tariffs on steel and aluminium, and has struggled to find alternative suppliers for raw materials not produced in the country.

Fresh measures on the materials by the Biden-Harris administration have added to his woes.

"I would be very happy to buy from a US producer," said Mr Actis, who imports wires to make stucco netting used in construction, "but there is no one willing to do it." He has previously been granted tariff exemptions, but the annual applications are not always successful.